Pokemon: Ultimate Adventures!
by Mikazuchi
Summary: New dangers are rising, the rules of battle are changing, and only the strong can survive. Ash must grow strong in order to protect his friends, because against the fiercest opponents in the world… there are no rules. AAMRN
1. Late Night Street Fight

Chapter 1- Late Night Street Fight

(Location- Green Forest)

"All right, Pikachu!" Ash yelled, "Now! Finish them off with THUNDER BOLT!!!!"

"Pii… kaaaa…" Pikachu growled, as electricity was gathering in his body, and sparks flew from his cheeks… "CHUUUU!!!!" A gigantic blast of electricity flew and hit the ground in front of Team Rocket, creating a huge explosion.

"Looks like Team Rocket's Blasting off AGAAAAIIN!" Jessie and James both cried as they flew over the horizon, along with their pokémon.

"Alright!" Ash jumped up and down excited. He looked at the other Team Rocket soldiers, all of them wearing masks covering their eyes, and dressed in black uniforms, "Okay guys! I've beaten all your pokémon, and Jessie & James! If you don't want to go blasting off like those two, I suggest you run as fast as you can, right now, because Pikachu's still got enough juice to the rest of you!!" He glared at the Rockets as Pikachu growled threateningly at the group of Rocket Grunts and all their KO'd pokémon.

One of the Rocket Grunts yelled, "Rockets! Retreat!" All the Team Rocket Grunts quickly recalled their pokémon into their pokéballs and then retreated into the thick woods. Kingler let down his claw and dropped to the ground, sweating and exhausted.

"You did a great job guys." Ash said, "Take a rest everybody! Return!" He held up several pokéballs, each one fired a red beam, pulling the exhausted pokémon back into its pokéball, and carried Pikachu himself, "Whew. That's was some battle today!"

Misty stepped forward, "That wasn't just some battle! That was the eleventh today, and adding up with the rest of the attacks, you've beaten down at least a hundred Rockets this week! I don't know what's up with them!"

It was true. They've been attacking the group again and again. Every time they beat Jessie, James and the underlings, they just came back with another group of grunts. Beating them in pokémon battles aren't that hard, but not when fighting more than twenty pokémon at the same time, multiplied by ten for each day. After all these attacks, all of Ash's pokémon were weak and worn out. Ash had to keep switching one of his pokémon with a healthy one through the white button on the pokédex. Even his entire Tauros herd is worn out.

Brock sighed, "I doubt they'll attack us again for a while. We've beaten them and their pokémon too many times, and we've bashed up Jessie and James's pokémon and themselves quite a lot today. I think they're probably going to go recover and regroup. It'll be a while before they come back"

"That's a relief. The ones I sent to Prof. Oak's lab via white button on pokédex are being treated, but the ones I'm carrying need to be healed. After this battle, I don't know if we'd be able to withstand another round of attacks."

Brock looked at the map, "Well, the closest pokémon center is in Scarlet City."

"How far is it to Scarlet?" Misty asked

"No that far" Said Brock, "It's probably several kilometres south of here. If we head there now, we'll reach it before nightfall"

"Well, we'd better get going then!" Ash said, picking up Pikachu and resting him on his shoulder.

(Location- Scarlet City)

Ash walked down the road. The pokémon were all resting at the pokémon centre, as was everyone else. He had Muk with him, partially for protection, because he was the only pokémon left, seeing how all the others are exhausted and hurt. They've even called Tracey to join them, seeing how they need more support, especially if Team Rocket decide to launch a full-scale assault on the group. Ash had asked Tracey to pick up Pidgeot and call Charicific valley for them send Charizard. Pidgeot was supposed to stay with that flock until Ash came back from the orange islands and Charizard was only planning on staying until he was the strongest Charizard in Charicific Valley, and both have them have completed their goals. The flock knows how to fight for themselves and Charizard has finally become stronger than Charla and any other Charizard in the Valley. The problem was that the group didn't really get the chances to go back, and these recent battles haven't been helping. Tracey had agreed to meet them. They also made a phone call to the Charicific valley asking for Charizard. Charizard is currently flying to Teal Ville, the next city. All of them will meet up in about a week. Tracey had already picked up Bulbasaur and Pidgeot.

They definitely need the strength of those high-level pokémon, and the support of another trainer. There was no doubt that soon Domino will attack, and even worse Giovanni. Ash remembered the Team Rocket agent 009, also known as the Black Tulip. Her real name is a secret, and she goes under the alias of Domino. She's an Elite Team Rocket member and very dangerous. Last time when they faced her, it was on Mewtwo's island with all those super clones. She caused a lot of trouble, held a baby Nidoqueen hostage and Ash wasn't able to even fight her because she took them by surprise and trapped them with those metallic rings before they could even move. If they have to fight her, then there'll definitely be more elite ranked Rockets, along with the Team Rocket combat squad and the air-raid army, and it will be only a matter of time until Giovanni himself shows up. Giovanni had used all those strong machines against Mewtwo. Team Rocket is a lot stronger than Ash would have ever believed possible. Ash is one of the top trainers in the world, he couldn't even put a scratch on Mewtwo, but Team Rocket mortally wounded him. That sleek aircraft beat all the pokémon clones in one shot each, and the twin robots were strong enough to wound Mewtwo to the point of near-death. If Ash didn't help him reach the spring, then Mewtwo wouldn't have survived. (If you haven't got a clue of what I'm talking about, watch the pokémon special Mewtwo Returns.)

Ash kept wondering why they were so intent on beating him now. Mewtwo erased the Rocket Society's memory so they have no recollection of the events in Purity Canyon, Mewtwo's location and of Ash, Misty and Brock. As far as Giovanni remembers, he doesn't even know them. But now really isn't the time to think about these things, especially not on an empty stomach. There's still a lot more and it made Ash's head hurt. It's been a while since Ash has eaten anything or slept, mostly because they were spending so much time on defending themselves against Rocket attacks and fighting, they never really got a chance to eat and relax.

Just then, he heard some loud yelling, and he had to check it out. He rushed around the corner and saw what was going on.

"AGH! STOP IT!!" A skinny Japanese-looking teenager with glasses was yelling.

Ash watched and by the looks of it, the teenager was being attacked by two punks.

"Shut up!" Said Punk A, punching the guy and sent his glasses flying off his face

"Be quiet if you know what's good for you!" Punk B said, tripping him.

"Heh, too easy" Punk A said, "I don't know what you did to upset the fiends, but we were told by the Doppelganger himself to take care of you!" They continued to laugh, kick and beat him (In the background, Ash runs in their direction, silently pulls out Muk's pokéball and tosses it so it lands between them) Muk popped up right between the two guys, making them both scream, and he pounced on Punk B. Punk A was caught by surprise when Ash jump kicked him on the back. The blow sent him crashing face-first, into a brick wall, and the wallet flew out of his hand and into the air. Ash caught it in with his left hand and looked at guy who was being mugged. The guy got up and put his glasses on, and took a good look at Ash.

"Are you okay?" He asked, holding the wallet and walking over to him

"I'm fine, thanks" said the guy, rubbing the side of his badly bruised face and accepting it"

Punk B was still struggling to get out, but Muk had completely smothered over him and wasn't going to let him go. But Punk A got up, and by the looks of it, really pissed off.

"That really hurt!" He yelled, rubbing his badly bruised face, "You are gonna pay!"

Ash just looked at him calmly, and just shrugged, "Yeah, like I'd have anything to be scared of a lowlife like you"

Punk A looked at him strangely, then laughed "So the little sucker's trying to be brave, huh? Looks like I'm gonna have to teach the punk a lesson!"

"Funny" Ash said, running over to him, "I was about to say the same thing!"

Punk A swung his fist at the smaller kid, but Ash sidestepped it easily.

The punk punched out again, and again, and again. But Ash kept dodging every hit.

"Grrr… Stupid kid! Fight like a man!" he yelled

The punk swung again, but Ash dodged it easily. The punk started growling and lashing out wildly. Ash just kept on moving back or sidestepping everyone, making the guy even madder. Even though he was fighting a possibly murderous street punk, Ash kept calm. He had learned that it is easier to win a fight when calm and cool instead of raging and berserk, and a good way to make the opponent enraged is to keep cool. It just irritates them. "Fine then!" Ash smiled

Before Punk A could react, Ash poked both of his eyes. Punk A screamed and held on to them, leaving a WIDE opening. Ash punched him on the stomach and kicked him really hard on the shins. Punk A backed up a few steps. Before he could recover from the hit those hits, Ash dashed and attacked him again. A swung his fist at the kid, but Ash only dodged it and landed another blow on the guy's face. Ash punched him really hard, making Punk A fall over on his back. The punk got up, panting and gasping, and Ash kept on hitting, not even giving him a chance. Now he was struggling to move. His arms and stomach were in pain, his nose was broken and he had a black eye, meanwhile the kid was fresh and looked like he could go on for hours. This was impossible! He's bigger, older and stronger than this kid! There's no way he could be winning! Yet he was fighting with all his might and was unable to even land a hit.

Even though Ash himself wasn't one of those super powerful, martial artists with all the techniques and such, he was still strong and tough and knew how to fight, and most importantly, he doesn't let himself get hit. He landed another blow on Punk A. Punk A dropped to his knees, badly bruised and hurt, he struggled to stand up.

"Done already?" said Ash

"Who… are you?" Punk A asked, struggling to breathe.

"My name is Ash Ketchum…!" Ash yelled, running kicking him in the face. It was too much, and the punk could no longer fight. He fell face-flat to the ground. "…And don't you forget it!"

Ash wiped some sweat of his forehead. To him, this was just another pokémon battle, where a combination of strategy, as well as strength is being used. In a battle, as well as calling out attacks, a pokémon trainer has to read the opponent's moves and direct their pokémon to evade them. The only difference this time was he's doing the evading and reacts to it himself, which is a whole lot easier than watching from a third person view and calling out what to do. He looked at Muk; Punk B has finally stopped struggling. Muk crawled off, and despite the little X's for eyes, Punk B was still alive.

The guy walked over to him and smiled "Thank you for helping me right there. You managed to stop those jerks from robbing me!"

"It was nothing really. These losers are nothing but petty thugs, I've been fighting much tougher guys lately" Ash said

The guy sighed "Although you made a really big mistake, telling him your name"

"What?" Ash asked

"You see… this city is very unlucky. One reason is that there is a Team Rocket base North of the city, but that's not the worst. There is a large and powerful mob of gangsters and punks, all led by one crime lord in this town. When you told them your name, you just made yourself their enemy, which is something you definitely don't want. They're probably gonna track you down, and definitely gang up on you, and won't quit attacking on you until you go down. This gang is called the Missingno"

Just hearing the word Missingno was enough to make Ash shudder. He had heard so many stories about that evil demon pokémon. In the legends, it didn't have a true form and came in sometimes strong, and sometimes weak. But its strength isn't what bothered everyone, it was the evil deeds it has committed (the thing messes up your game! Can you think of anything more evil?)

"Ugh… Okay, so I've got another band of jerks, they call themselves the Missingno, who aren't going to stop picking on me until I go down. Two questions. Are they anything like Team Rocket? I mean as strong, and by going down, do you mean just beating me in a battle, or until I'm dead?" Ash asked

The guy looked at the ground "Well, yes and no. They are, but they aren't. The Team Rocket society only fights trainers in pokémon battles and steal their pokémon. The Missingno gang isn't as organized, but definitely violent. Fortunately, not all of them have pokémon. The gangsters and punks with pokémon may not be as strong as Team Rocket's, but that doesn't matter. They use their pokémon and attack trainers, taking them on by surprise, attacking the person and without bothering to challenge them, and then steal their pokémon along with the money and possessions. They also go out and commit serious crimes. Hold-ups, ransoms, hostages and murder… The ones without pokémon would fund the mob by mugging defenceless people like me. And they're probably going to take you by surprise, gang up on you, take your pokémon and then kill you" He looked at the two unconscious punks, "It was a good thing it was only two guys you were fighting, because even if you could beat that one up, and possibly both of them, normally they'd come in larger groups. The only things these Missingno jerks are good at is ganging up on people."

"Well, if that's the case, then maybe me and my friends should stay here for a while, beat the leader, send them to jail, and I won't have any worries about being killed, for the time being"

The guy looked at him "The way you defeated those two, I really think you are a very strong trainer. But the Missingno isn't something to be taken lightly. This city, Scarlet, has by far, the strongest police forces in the Johto and Kanto regions, we have four officer Jennies, an Arcanine, Growlithe and Spinarak fighting unit. And even they aren't enough! These days, there are muggers showing up way more than usual. I think they're trying to raise more money, and the Missingno gang pokémon trainers are busy training. Word on the streets say they're preparing for something big. Still, if you wish to fight them, then there isn't anything I can do to stop you. Well, I gotta go now…" He started walking away, and then stopped and turn around "By the way, my name's Ebi"

Ash stood there and watched him walking away. This explains all the Rocket attacks, because they're close to a base. He looked left and right, and saw no one was around. He walked over to the Punk B, reached into the pockets, and pulled out a large bundle of bills. Ash whistled at the huge wad of cash. He walked over to Punk A, reached for his wallet and took out as much cash as B.

"Hey kid! Get your grubby meat-hooks off my money!" Punk A turned his head and yelled at him, lying on the ground, still unable to move.

"Your money?" Ash waved the bills around, "You've been mugging defenceless people for this!"

"Not for that cash! I earned that money through good honest work!" He yelled, "We work long and hard, and for that, my boss pays us well!"

"Good honest work? Earned that money? Well, in that case…" Ash said, flipping through the bills and counting them. "You've _earned_ that money by beating up a lot of weaker, innocent people just because some guy tells you to. I'm just teaching you a valuable lesson in life. Crime doesn't pay, but it does to the guys who fight it! And since it's yours and not stolen from civilians, to the victor go the spoils"

If it were robbed from innocent people, Ash would have taken it straight to an Officer Jenny for her to give it back to the rightful owners, but this cash didn't belong to anyone innocent. Not to mention, it's 100 legal for RPG heroes (pokémon's an RPG don't forget) to claim along with items won in the battle, the bad guy's cash.

"This should cover for an exceptionally large meal." Ash said, counting the money, and stepping on Punk A's head as he walked. "About a dozen exceptionally large meals, not to mention some hyper potions, pester balls, and an assortment of evolution stones and maybe some power up items like poison barb or quick claw…" The guy started swearing loudly, and Ash cringed. Plugging his ears, he spoke up, Geez, man! Shut up already! MUK!"

"Muk!" Muk immediately crawled onto the swearing Punk A, smothering him completely and quieting things down. Ash took his fingers out of his ears.

"Thanks Muk. It would be unfair to the other guy if he were the only one who got the cruel and unusual treatment. Stay there until he stops struggling. Oh, and by the way, make sure he doesn't swallow his tongue when he faints. I'm hittin' the sushi bar. Meet me back at the pokémon center."

Ash walked down the sidewalk whistling to himself and counting the money. Indistinct muffled swearing could still be heard. Ash was then stopped. A group of four punks were standing in his way. One of them had a two-by-four, another one was holding a chain, the third was wearing brass knuckles, and the last one was holding a pipe.

"Hey kid!" Brass knuckles punk spoke, "I saw just saw what you did to our friends!"

"You're gonna pay for that!" yelled chain punk

"Beating up our friends wasn't enough! You just had to rob them!" Pipe punk clenched the metal pipe.

Ash sweatdropped and spoke "Guys, come on! Chill out! There's no need to fight about it!"

"Oh yes there is!" They all yelled at him, "You're going down!"

Ash sighed. He wasn't stupid enough to fight a group of guys older and bigger and armed by himself, well… yes he is, and he could probably win if he fought really dirty, but he wasn't in the mood right now.

"Sure guys, fine, whatever, I'm really not in the mood to fight you, but if you want to fight, you can fight." The muffled swearing in the background has stopped, "I guess that guy must be out by now so get them Muk!"

"MUK!" Muk yelled, jumping from around the corner and charging at the band of armed punks.

Ash continued walking right past them, whistling to himself. He knew that they'd ignore him now that there's a bigger threat.

"Watch out!" The punk with the two-by-four yelled quickly as they readied themselves. They scattered to get out of the charging Muk's way, but the one with the chain wasn't so lucky. Muk rammed him straight into the wall.

Muk turned around and curled up with defence curl. His sludge body was swirling, mixing, and churning. For most pokémon, it would make them harder and tougher, but for Muk, it made him even slimier and watery. Because it made him slimier, it made him even more toxic, therefore increasing his attack power

"YEAAAH!!" The one with the pipe raised it over his head and was going to swing it. Muk turned around, and hit him with a sludge attack by swinging his extra slimy hand and slapped a load of sludge into the guy's face, throwing him back, struggling on the floor trying to pull off the hardened rubbery sludge.

The punk with the two-by-four slammed it onto Muk's back, but Muk didn't even flinch. He didn't feel much pain, if any at all. Muk turned around, and saw that the pipe punk managed to rip the sticky slime off his face. Muk opened his mouth, and let out an almighty belch, along with a lot of black gas. It was a poison gas attack! The three remaining punks backed off out of the toxic gas's range. With all that poisonous breath around, it was like a smokescreen and they couldn't enter. The smoke cleared, and Muk was no longer there.

"Careful guys!" Brass knuckles punk said, "He could be anywhere"

Muk was sticking to the side of the building. "Hmm?" The two-by-four punk looked in his direction. Immediately Muk leapt and pounced on him. Clamped his mouth over the top half of his body, so only his legs showed. Muk held him in his mouth, and spun around and around, faster and faster, and released the two-by-four punk, sending him flying into pipe punk and they both crashed into the wall and collapsed right on top of the chain punk. Muk turned around. The brass knuckles punk was the only one left.

He opened his mouth and yelled, "MUUUUUK!" and charged at the last one.

"HIYEAAH!" The brass knuckles punched straight into Muk's face, going right through. "Ugh… I think I'm gonna puke" It felt like he was punching a big wet pile of cold, fresh manure, but at least manure smelled nicer and was definitely a lot cleaner than this. He pulled his arm out quickly and looked at it. "Gross!" It was covered in purple smelly slime. Muk's arm shot out and grabbed the punk's face with one hand, and the neck with the other. He then turned around hurled the last remaining punk over his head, straight into the brick wall, and landing on top of the others, all of them moaning and groaning in pain.

"MUUUK!" He yelled in victory, and began to charge at the punks, to finish them off.

(In the background, you hear crashing sounds, men screaming, and Muk laughing. Don't worry; they're alive after this, although not very much)

As Ash walked down the sidewalks, but he was really starting to regret leaving Muk back there, he was alone. The streets were all dark and empty, and Ash soon realized the situation he was in. There was a reason the streets were empty, because people were afraid of getting robbed. Just like Ebi back there, he was wide open for anyone to attack. He started to feel something he had not felt in a long time, fear. He started to walk faster, hoping to reach the center soon. He felt like someone was watching him, creeping up on him. But he was the future pokémon master of the world, and the legendary chosen one! He could not let fear take him over! Even without pokémon, he has to rely on his next best weapon, his instincts. He stopped walking, and took a deep breath.

"HAAA!" Ash yelled as he spun around, punching the person who was creeping up on him in the face. Ash looked at the guy fall over, it was another one!

"Owwww…" The gangster growled, getting up. The man was planning to attack from behind, and with a blow on the head, Ash would be down. This is exactly what Ebi told him would happen!

Ash was shaking a bit, but took up a fighting stance and prepared himself to fight. Unlike back there, with the punks, he was facing a gangster, alone. Against Punk A, that guy was unarmed and a loser, plus Muk was right behind him, but now there was no one to watch his back. Ash took a deep breath and readied himself as the gangster charged at him. Ash moved and dodged the punch, but barely. He shot his arm straight and punched the gangster straight in the face. When the gangster flinched from the blow, it left another opening for Ash to hit. He kicked the gangster hard on the stomach with his knee. When he bent over, Ash hit him with an uppercut, causing him to fall over on his back, and then Ash charged again ready to punch him, feeling more confident. The gangster punched out, and Ash moved quickly to the right, dodging it. Before Ash could do anything else, he took a full blow in the face.

"AHH!" Ash yelled out in pain from that hit. He stumbled back a few feet, tripped and hit the wall, and looked up just to see that gangster charging at him. Ash got up and crouched. "Take this!" He yelled as he dove under the gangster's legs, grabbing them, twisting himself and tripping the gangster, causing him to fall crash into a few trashcans that were in his way.

Ash rubbed the side of his face on the spot where he had been punched. He saw the gangster trying to get up, but Ash wasn't going to let him. He jumped onto the gangster's back and kept stomping him hard, but he wasn't counting on the gangster making a move.

"You- Stupid- JERK!" Ash kicked him, turned around and walked off

As he turned around, the gangster got up and pulled out a knife. Ash turned around, just in time to see the man charging at him.

"WA!" He barely dodged the knife. Before the guy could use it any more, Ash grabbed his arm and bit it, hard. The gangster yelled out in pain and dropped the weapon. With his fist, he slammed Ash on the head hard, again and again, until he was too dazed to keep a grip.

Ash groaned in pain and stumbled backwards. He could see the man turning around and pulled his arm back a bit, about to punch Ash. Ash and looked quickly to his right and grabbed the first thing he could reach. As the gangster struck forwards, Ash pulled up a trash can lid and blocked the hit.

"YEOWCH!" The gangster yelled out and pulled his aching fist back, "You're not going to made is easy on me, are you?"

"What-does-it-look-like-you-MORON!" Ash grunted, blocking every hit.

Ash sucker punched gangster, hard "Don't you have anything better to do than rob little boys at night?!" Ash swung the lid, and slammed it into the dazed gangster's face. Ash put his fingers in the "V" peace sign, although the intent was the exact opposite. He poked both the gangster's eyes.

"YEAARRGH!!" The gangster screamed, and dropped to his knees.

Ash grabbed the gangster's hair, yanked down and slammed his face into the concrete sidewalk. The guy lay face down, totally unconscious this time. Ash panted and wiped sweat off of his forehead. He didn't feel like eating anymore. He kicked the gangster's unconscious body, "JERK!" He yelled, and ran to the pokémon center as fast as he can, he didn't want to fight anymore. He rushed to safety in the center before any more trouble came.

_Things have gone from bad, to worse. Not only is Team Rocket attacking in masses, Ash had gone out and made himself a new set of enemies! Where will it go from here? Find out next time on Pokémon: Ultimate Adventures!_

(TO BE CONTINUED)


	2. The Life of a Trainer, The Destiny of a ...

Chapter 2- The Life of a Trainer, The Destiny of a Master

(Location- Scarlet City Pokémon Center)

"ASH, you moron!" Misty yelled at him, "You're telling me that you've been outside, at night time, by yourself, FIGHTING GANGSTERS?!"

Ash cringed, but then straightened up. "I wasn't alone! I had Muk with me the whole time!"

"The whole time, huh? How come Muk came to the center by himself, and you weren't around?!" She yelled, "Nurse Joy just told us about that Missingno gang! You could have been hurt! No… not hurt, KILLED!"

Ash rubbed the back of his head "Well, I may have a few bruises, but I'm fine! During the past few years, I've been zapped, scorched, half-drowned, whipped, frozen, thrown over cliffs, or just plain beaten to a pulp, on more than one occasion! I'm alive, and unharmed! What more could you want?"

Misty slapped him in the face, and glared at him, her face was red and burning with anger, and there was a small tear in the corner of her eye, "You can start by not being so stupid!" With that, she stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

"Is it safe to come in now?" Brock unlocked the door and walked out of the bathroom. He locked himself there the second he saw Ash come in. They knew what was coming. If there was one thing that truly frightened everyone, it was Misty's lethal temper. According to Misty's sisters, when she was mad, all the pokémon, even the Gyarados dived down and huddled in the deepest, rockiest, darkest corners and caves of the aquarium.

Ash rubbed the side of his face where she slapped him, "Man, that girl is SO **UNCUTE**! What is her problem?!"

Brock looked at him, "She thought you might have been hurt, or worse with all those Rockets out there. Just after hearing about the Missingno gang, she started freaking out! She almost had a fit back there!"

"(In other words, she was acting normal" Ash muttered, "She didn't have to slap me! If she was so worried about me getting hurt, why'd she do it me herself?"

"She didn't mean to hurt you, she was just worried to have lost someone who means so much to her" Brock answered

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Ash, you've been traveling with her for a while. Can't you take a hint? She was really worried about you." Said Brock, "As for the hitting, she was going much easier on you lately"

"What are you talking about?" Ash asked, even more confused.

"Ash, Ash, Ash…" Brock said, "It's so obvious. The yelling, the daily arguments and then making up later on… those are all the signs of a very close couple."

"What are you getting at Brock?" Ash eyed him

"I'm just saying…" Brock started speaking "The way she acts around you. It means that she really, REALLY likes you… but is just too shy to admit it and uses the bike as an excuse. I mean, you've more than repaid your dept, saved our lives, gave us an unforgettable adventure through places no one has ever been, and it was thanks to you she got Togepi… I've seen couples like that many times. Those kind of girls with a lot of spunk, they are almost always the most caring, and loving people. I tell you, you should be happy! Kids these days! They never appreciate the good things life gives them. You're a really strong trainer and possibly destined to be a master, and you also have a girl like her who likes you, there's no better prize than that!" Brock said, and saw nurse Joy walk by in the hallway, he goes all red and talks in an idiotic tone, "Of course, I could be mistaken!"

"Knock it off!" Ash punched him hard on the back of the head. "Quit talking like that! You're embarrassing me!" he added, his eyes closed and had an angry expression, but his face was red.

"Seriously!" Brock said, getting up with a large bump on his head, "I thought that when I left the group temporarily back in the Orange Islands, because you two would be alone, that would give you enough privacy and the opportunity to tell her…"

"Oh yeah! I remember!" Ash interrupted "That was when you stayed on that island with professor _Ivy!_"

(A cold wind blew through the room and background turns black and Brock turns a shade of blue) Brock looked like he was just hit by lightening, "THAT… THAT NAME!" he huddled in the corner sulking.

"Hmph, that shut him up!" Ash said, leaving the room and headed for the lobby, his eyes closed, angry expression and his face red

"Oh Ash!" Nurse Joy called, running up to him and next to her, Pikachu, "You're pokémon are all healed!" she held up a tray with five pokéballs

"Thank you nurse" He said, accepting them. She walked away and returned to her work. "Pikachu! How're ya doing buddy?" He asked

"PIKA PI!" Pikachu happily responded and held up a peace sign.

"Great to see you all rested up!" Ash said, kneeling and petting Pikachu's head

"Our top story tonight, crime rates are on the rise as local police are helpless before Missingno gang!" The local news reporter on the TV spoke, Ash stood up and looked at the TV. "Citizens of Scarlet City are still living in fear, due to the presence of the dangerous gang. We have assurance from local police chief, Officer Jenny that they are doing everything they can to control the gang, and the streets are safe to walk, yet people are still hesitant. Rumour had it that the Missingno gang had recently formed an alliance with the infamous 'Super Fiends', the legendary group of notorious fighters in the underworld. Regardless of assurance from our police chief, we can't help but wonder what lies in store for us, and whether our town will ever be safe again. Keep watching for more updates! In other news, the winner of the Super Smash Bros tournament has been announced, it is…"

"Well what do you know. Someone actually won that crazy competition" Ash said "And what the 'Super Fiends'? Just who are they?"

"Allow me to answer that Ash" A familiar voice answered.

Ash turned around, "Ebi!? When did you get here?!"

"Shortly after you" he answered, straightening his glasses, "Well anyways, you wanted to know about the Fiends? You see… the Super Fiends is a legendary team of renegades, and they are in all aspects, the ultimate anti-heroes. To say they're powerful is more than an understatement, as each of them hold powers beyond what we would consider 'human'. Skilled trainers, gym leaders, pokémon masters, entire armies even… the number of people to have fallen in battle against the Super Fiends is beyond count, they do not know defeat." He explained, "Time to time, they work as mercenaries for hire, and they are currently working for the Missingno gang."

"So that's what you were warning me about?" Ash asked

"Up till now it was only a rumour that the Missingno gang had sided with the Fiends… but recently it's been confirmed. If they wanted, a single Super Fiend can easily wipe out that entire gang." He crossed his arms and looked down, "As far as I know, there are only two sorts of people who deal with that group… people stupid enough to challenge them, or those with enough money to buy their services. Even if you have the money, there's no guarantee of your safety, they are unpredictable and can turn on you at any time… and the Missingno gang's no exception to that rule. Overall, it's best to avoid the fiends altogether"

"So I guess that means I shouldn't be worried about those Missingno punks… the real threat are the fiends…"

"Yeah, if you want to get killed. Don't forget, the Missingno gang doesn't have any problems with killing guys like you. Whoa! Look at the time! Gotta go!" Ebi said, walking towards the exit of the pokémon center.

"Yo, Ebi!" Ash called out, running to him, "Is it safe for you to go out? I mean you being a defenceless guy with all those thugs out there?"

"Perfectly safe" Ebi replied calmly and held out a strange looking device, "Take a look at this."

Ash walked closer and Ebi touched him with the device. (Camera-view switches to outside the pokémon center. You see HUGE flashes of light and lightning through the windows) Ash was laying flat on the floor, charred and smoking, and there were small bolts of electricity running around his body.

"I would have been able to defend myself earlier, but my custom made super ultra-deluxe Hyper-Volt, Giga-Thunder Ebi-brand Taser was out of power. It holds enough energy to give about a thousand shocks before running out of power. I bring it with me for two reasons. One is for self-defence, and two is just for kicks, mostly just for kicks, but mainly for self-defence. This time was for kicks" He laughed, "But… it ran out of power. I came here to have the electrodes power it up." He looked at it and gasped, "Whoa! I'm sorry! I accidentally set this thing on kill!" Ash was still face-flat on the ground, but he twitched a little, "Okay, that's a good sign, you're still alive. You see, I'm an expert at designing gadgets and such, and I make a ton of money for them. I get paid thousands of dollars designing the traps, items and arenas they use in the Smash Bros. Tournaments…"

Ash got up and gave Ebi a HUGE punch in the face, sending him flying, crashing through the doors, tumbling down the cement steps, and rolling out flat on the sidewalk, "You jerk! That really, REALLY HURT! Consider yourself lucky that I didn't have to get rough on ya!"

"Owww… JEEZUS CHRIS'!" Ebi yelled, and got up, "If you're gonna give me that kinda attitude, then don't expect any more help from me!" And with that, he walked off. Ash watched, him head out of sight, into the darkness and quiet… which was broken a in a flash of light and electric bolts flying everywhere, and men screaming. Ebi was just out zapping some more guys with that Ultra Ebi-Taser thing.

"So Ash, who was that?" Brock asked, walking up to Ash,

"Some guy" Ash answered plainly

"That guy isn't a trainer, is he? With all those Missingno thugs around, is it safe for him to walk the streets at night?" Brock asked

(You see a huge flash of electricity and lightning bolts flying, and you hear guys screaming) "He's safe enough" Ash answered flatly, "I'm really tired, I'm going to bed now." He finished and walked to the bedrooms.

(Bedrooms)

Although she was very exhausted, Misty just couldn't get to sleep. It wasn't Ash's occasional snoring that was keeping her awake; it was the situation they were in. Over the years on their adventure, they've encountered many problems and enemies and overcame them all, but this isn't a situation they've ever handled before. Team Rocket had put up an extremely tough fight, and they didn't quit even though they were beaten dozens of times. But now, they've got a deadly gang after them. No, they're after Ash. Normally, Misty would take it calmly because she knows Ash can handle himself against any enemy, but this gang didn't want to have a pokémon battle with Ash, they wanted to kill him. "Why did it have to be us?" She asked quietly, rolling onto her side, "Why does it have to be him?"

"A pokémon trainer is like a warrior. Day in, day out, the fighting never ends. Ash already knew he would be fighting more than just pokémon battles when he became a trainer" Brock answered out loud from the top bunk on his bed.

Misty gasped, "Brock! Y-you're awake!" She felt so embarrassed. Brock heard her!

"Yeah, I can't sleep either. I just can't relax" He lay on his back, speaking quietly, not to disturb Pikachu and Ash, "Even though Ash knows what he's in for, I can't believe he's taking this so calmly! I've just heard about those Super Fiends, and judging by their descriptions, I don't know if any of us could stand a chance"

"Do you think we stand a chance?" Misty asked

"I don't know, but now's not a good time to think about these things. We should get some sleep, before Ash wakes up." Brock said

After that, none of them spoke, and slowly, they sunk into a deep sleep. But one person was still awake. Ash sat up in his bed, he had heard everything,

"(They are right)" He thought to himself, "(Team Rocket and Missingno gang, if I want to stand a chance, there is only one way)" He stood up and looked out the window to the sky. Moonlight shone through the window as he gazed at the stars, he then looked down at his clenched fist and spoke quietly "When I left my home in Pallet Town, I vowed to be the first trainer who captures one hundred and fifty different pokémon and to be a pokémon master. But now, there is a lot more. From this day on, I have a new goal. I will to become more than just a pokémon master with lots of pokémon, a mere champion of some sport. I want to be more than just an individual, but a legend. From this day forwards, not only I vow to be the greatest pokémon master there was, is, and ever will be, but I shall defend those weaker than me and that are unable to defend themselves. Even at the cost of my own life, I swear to protect. Anyone who challenges me, I have to defeat them, I will to follow my destiny and I will fight and win." He closed his eyes and looked at the ground, then raised his head and stared at the bright crescent moon. "If any of those Team Rocket elites or Missingno guys or even Super Fiends are too hard, then I will get stronger, and win!" He climbed into bed, and closed his eyes, "If I want to get stronger, I need the help of my friends. From here, I'm heading to Teal Ville, to find Tracey, and my pokémon." And with that, he fell asleep.

(Location- Green Forest)

The group headed on to Scarlet's sister city, Teal Ville. Although Tracey wasn't supposed to be there for about another week, Ash would be training there, and Team Rocket wouldn't know where to find them. When leaving the city, Ash saw them looking for them, and that meant that they won't know that they'd be in Teal. It also meant that they'd be away from the Missingno punks and gangsters.

They continued deeper and deeper into the woods. Back in Scarlet, Ash had run into a lone Team Rocket grunt, and before the grunt could call up any pokémon, Ash had beaten him down because a battle would attract too much attention, especially from other Team Rocket and Missingno members. After beating up and tying up the Team Rocket Grunt, he took along with some super potions, an accurate map of the area. They had to take the long walk through the northeast path in the dense forest area. According to Team Rocket's map, the base is exactly North of Scarlet, and further north is Teal. If they didn't want trouble from an entire criminal organization army, they had to walk around it. Plus the dense forest will provide excellent cover.

"Uh… Ash," Misty said nervously as they reached a fork in the pathways. One led North through open woods and sunlight, the one to the right went into an extremely deep and dark area and had a danger sign planted on the ground "That wouldn't be the dense Green forest area we have to cross, would it?"

"No, it wouldn't be" Ash answered, Misty and Brock sighed in relief, but saw that Ash had a grim look on his face, "The Green forest dense area is deeper in the middle of the forest, and that's where the Team Rocket base is. Green forest ends at the pathway to the right. From then on, its Dark forest time until we reach the east side of Teal"

Brock gulped. He remembered this situation. In deep forests like that, lots of dark pokémon hide out, and especially the ghost types. Oh, how he hated ghost pokémon. Misty was nervous because that's the kind of area where you'd find tons of bug pokémon. Ash was fine because if there were to be lots of pokémon attacking, then there'd be more battles and experience for him. They walked into the dark forest, not knowing what dangers they would find.

(Location- Dark Forest)

It hasn't even been half an hour, and they've already lost the trail. The trees were all so full of leaves and close together; it was as dark as night and the forest was more like a cave. Misty clutched Togepi tightly; she did not like this place one bit. Every once in a while, she would feel like someone, or something was watching them. Ash pushed some branches out of the way and pushed through the thick bushes. Ash wished he had something to cut them out of the way. He could always use Bayleef, but the flash of Bayleef coming out of the pokéball and the sound of the razor leaves slicing through the undergrowth would be too risky. There's supposed to be a small Team Rocket outpost here. Until now, Ash had never known Team Rocket was this dangerous.

Ash looked behind him at his friends, Misty was nervous and was constantly looking left and right for any signs of danger, but Brock wasn't acting that way, "Hey Brock" Ash called, silently, "(You seem awfully calm, even for a place like this"

"I'm only calm because I know there's no ghost pokémon here. It's surprising, because in a place like this, they'd usually be swarming in packs"

"How would you know there's no ghosts?" Ash asked

"Because his eyes are as much use in the dark as they are in the light! It wouldn't make a difference if it was a bright afternoon!" Misty said angrily

"That's not true!" Brock said, "You know I can see!"

"Maybe, or maybe because blind people have better senses of hearing and smell!" Misty said

"I'm not blind! I just squint because my eyes are very sensitive to light, and dark! If I were blind, then how does that explain why I'm walking around without bumping into trees? (Thump) OW!" Brock bumped into a tree, "Joke, and I'll kill you…"

"SHHH!" Misty hissed, "We don't want any trouble just because you can't keep quiet!" she said angrily

"Jeez guys, what's the problem with this place?" Ash asked both of them, "The only ghosts we ever see are pokémon and they can all be beaten and captured now. To you, this place may be scary, but I'm not the least bit frightened"

"Ash! When are you ever gonna drop the big hero attitude?!" Misty asked him, trying her best to keep her voice down

"Be quiet! I hear something!" Brock hushed them both. They all listened into the forest. They heard something… the sound of a battle, coming from far away. From what they could hear, it was a tremendous one. A monstrous roar echoed in the distance, it sounded like it came from some horrible monster, followed by complete silence. The silence was suddenly broken by a shrill, piercing scream that made the hair on Ash's head stand, Brock covered his ears, Togepi immediately withdrew deep into the shell and Misty grabbed on to Ash's shoulder in fear. Pikachu's cheeks began to spark and Ash was shaking.

"What was that!?" Ash gasped, his fists were shaking.

"It… it seems like, l-like there's more in this forest than Rockets and pokémon…" Brock was shaking.

Misty held on to Ash even harder, "A-Ash! I want to get out of this forest now!" She was scared beyond belief. Not even in her nightmares has she ever been so frightened.

"I want out of this place too…" Ash held her back. Now that he knew there really was something in these woods, he wanted out. "Let's hurry up, it's supposed to be a bright afternoon right now, yet it's as dark as night! If the sun sets, it'll probably be pitch black. Let's… move ahead, and get out of here!"

Although scared beyond their worst belief, they continued northwards. Ash kept his hand close to his pokébelt. Misty had a mallet in one arm, and the other's was linked to Ash's free one (surprise, surprise). Brock had Onix's pokéball in one hand, ready to throw, and his frying pan in the other. Crobat was flying a bit above their heads so it could detect any movement from any side. Pikachu rode on Ash's shoulder, sparking and anticipating an attack. However… they didn't realise it yet, but they were being watched…

Meanwhile, high over the forest, up in the air, another party was following them.

"Jessie! Do we actually have to go down there?!" James whined

"You heard the bosses orders! We're lucky enough to only be sent to Dark Forest just to get the twerps! I almost expected him to send us to stay in that outpost in the middle of the forest!"

"Yeesh, who knew the boss could be so harsh on anybody?" Meowth asked, "Normally, when any Rocket messes up enough times, we get stationed in that place. Apparently there's something in those woods, that's been attacking the Rockets, and I heard an Elite Team Rocket 00 Agent went there to check it out."

"Which Rocket agent is it this time?" Jessie asked

"I not sure… but I think it's 001" Meowth answered

"001? Oh yeah… I remember him!" James "He's one of the oldest members of Team Rocket, and has been there decades before we even joined! From what I heard, he's also one of the strongest, he was even defeated one of the Elite Four! I think it was… it was Agatha he defeated!"

"Agatha?!" Both Meowth and Jessie exclaimed at the same time, Agatha, despite her age, she was one of the strongest members of the Elite Four, although she's probably retired by now, and Lance has left to go wandering. "Well… if there 001 is that strong, and he's down there, then I don't think we'd have to go down there and fight the twerps!" Jessie said happily.

They all started cheering at the good news. Not going down there meant not having to fight Ash's team, which also meant no blasting off today! Suddenly, Meowth stopped cheering, "Uh, guys? Do you feel… something?"

"What do you mean?"

Meowth looked down at the forest. "Well, earlier on, that creepy forest was further down, but now…" They looked down; they were barely over the trees! "We're going down!" Meowth then looked at the flame, which kept the balloon up. It was very weak and struggling to stay lit. "No! Stay up!" He yelled, horrified. If there was any place he did not want to be, it was Dark Forest. The flame shrunk and snuffed out. He then looked at Jessie and James, "Alright! Which one of you forgot to replace the gas tank!?" He yelled out.

"I think it was James's turn to replace it this time." Jessie answered

"You moron!" Meowth jumped up and slashed James on the face

"EEEAAA!" James screamed, holding his face

"Calm down Meowth! If we're in this situation, we have to work together! So what if we're gonna land in that creepy wood? Those twerps have survived countless dangers because of Teamwork, and so will we! We will work together, and we'll make it through!" Jessie spoke, "James! Get the spare gas tank!"

"Um, we don't have that one either…" James spoke nervously, "I used up all the gas for last night's barbecue. I didn't think it would run out so fast! But I have to say! I don't think I've ever had such great ribs…" His speech was cut off when Jessie kicked him off the balloon.

(Meanwhile, down below)

Ash, Misty and Brock trudged nervously through the dark forest. Each one of them was scared beyond belief. They kept feeling like there was a pair of eyes watching them. Although they have been walking for more than an hour, they seemed to be getting nowhere.

Ash shone a flashlight onto the Team Rocket map. They couldn't use it to light up the way, because it didn't have that much energy and should only be used for emergencies, so in order to preserve energy, he had to use it sparingly. By the looks of things, the formation of the trees, they were in the East wood part of the dark forest. They're directly east of the Team Rocket base, and from here on, they would have to travel North a few kilometres, then curve Northwest, walk a little bit more and then they'll reach the Eastern entrance to Teal Ville.

"It'll be impossible to reach Teal before nightfall" Brock said, "It's over twenty kilometres away, and its already sunset. The only way we'd get there in that amount of time is if we sprint the entire length of the woods."

"And none of us could do that" Ash said, "It just keeps getting darker and darker. We'll just have to stop and rest here until it gets brighter…"

"Ash! We can't sleep here!" Misty said

"But Ash is right. There's nothing better we could do, other than stop and rest. In a few hours, it'll be pitch black. We should set up camp."

"But what about those sounds we heard earlier on?!" Misty yelled

"Figments of our overactive imaginations?" Ash said hopefully

Misty whacked him on the head with the mallet "That has got to be one of the stupidest things I've ever heard… I wonder why I even bother following you this far!"

"Hey, I wonder about that too." Ash said, "But let's talk about that later. But this is the best place we could set up camp. This is the only clearing big enough to sleep in. It wasn't big enough to light a fire, but everywhere else in the woods the trees are about four feet apart, five tops. Over here, it's also covered under the shade of the thick leaves, but it's several square meters open.

(Five minutes later)

They've unrolled their sleeping bags. Unfortunately, they couldn't light a fire. Not enough room in the clearing for both a fire and the sleeping bags. The fire lit anywhere else would cause this forest to go up in flames, although that did seem like a good idea. But no fire meant no hot food, which was inconvenient because they were all very hungry.

"Ugh, fried noodles taste awful when un-fried!" Ash complained to Brock, eating the dry, stick-like, plastic tasting noodles.

Misty wasn't enjoying her dinner either, "At least you're eating human food!" Pikachu and Togepi were definitely enjoying it, but Brock's pokémon food tasted awful to her. "Do you have anything that's edible for humans!?"

Brock searched through his bag, there had to be something that could be eaten cold, then he found it. "Yes! Here it is! The rice balls!" This caught both Ash and Misty's attention. He pulled out a yellow, plastic container and opened it, "Well, there is one left. What do you say we draw straws, or flip a coin…?" He looked and screamed as both Ash and Misty pounced on him to try and take it. It flew into the air, and Ash caught it.

"Oh yes, it's mine!" He exclaimed happily.

"Oh no, it isn't!" Misty grabbed his wrist and pulled his arm down and started twisting it, trying to get him to drop it.

Ash shook her off, but she turned around and uppercutted him, sending him flying a few meters away, and the rice ball into the air. She jumped up to catch it, but Ash got up, ran, leapt, and pushed her out of the way. As she dropped to the ground, in midair he snatched it and opened his mouth to eat it. But instead, a large rock flew and hit Ash in the mouth, painfully tilting his head back, causing him to let go of the rice ball and fall headfirst onto the floor, hitting his head and chomping the rock.

Misty clapped her hands, and ran to get it as it fell from the air. Ash sat up, reached with both hands and yanked out the large stone stuck in his mouth and spat out a few bits of gravel. (You can see very deep teeth marks on the rock)

Brock stared at them and sweatdropped; he might have stepped in to stop the fighting, if it was verbal.

Misty tried quickly to bite it, but she wasn't quick enough. Ash's hand shot up from behind and grabbed her shoulder, pulling her back and causing her to stumble. He clenched his teeth when he pulled with one arm and his other arm reached for the rice ball. Misty's teeth were clenched as well. One hand was pushing at Ash's face, trying to get him away, and the arm with the rice ball was stretched, keeping it away from Ash.

"Give… it… to… me!"

"No… I won't! It… is… MINE!"

"Whew" Brock whistled. He sat and watched them, and Pikachu and Togepi as well. "This even better than wrestling!" Pikachu and Togepi cheering for whomever they thought would win.

"All Right! That's does it!" Misty yelled

"You wanna fight?! Well bring it on!" Ash yelled back

Misty, with one arm grabbed Ash and flipped him over her head to the ground, "Ha!"

"Whoa… along with wrestling, Misty knows Judo as well!" Brock sweatdropped

She laughed, sensing victory. Ash's leg kicked out at the back of Misty's tripping her. "EAAH!" She fell over, but held her arm up, trying to keep the rice ball from Ash.

"And Ash also knows street fighting! That evens things up! This is an exciting match, but who's gonna win!?" Brock spoke, acting like an announcer at some freestyle-fighting match.

Misty was kneeled on the ground, her left hand was pushing at Ash's face, her right was stretched out, keeping the rice ball away from Ash. Ash was kneeling at her left, struggling to breathe because her hand was covering his mouth. Both his arms were focused on Misty's right arm. Misty's mood was reaching it's lethal point.

"THAT DOES IT ASH! YOU'RE GOING DOWN!" She yelled

"Hmmm?" Brock wondered what was she going to do, watching them from a safe distance. Pikachu and Togepi watched, then Pikachu immediately closed his eyes and covered Togepi's eyes while Brock turned his head and covered his eyes as well.

**SLAM!**

Ash was lying, face flat on the floor, with a HUGE bump on his head. Misty's hair was all messed up, and she was covered in dirt, and so was Ash. She was sitting on Ash's back, eating the Rice ball, and holding a metal folding chair, with a very large dent in it.

"Whoa! She gave him the chair!" Brock cheered along with Pikachu and Togepi, "And the winner is… Misty!"

_Well… okay. So I guess teamwork is something that still needs to be worked on, for both our heroes and Team Rocket. Ash had sworn a new goal, one that he intends to carry out, and unfortunately, this one is a whole lot harder than his first. Can he and his friends overcome the dangers and escape the dark forest? Read on!_

(TO BE CONTINUED)


	3. Dark Duels in a Dark Forest

Chapter 3- Dark Duels in a Dark Forest

(Location- Dark Forest)

After spending the entire day travelling through the dark forest, night eventually fell. It was surprisingly easy to get to sleep that night, considering how creepy this place was, and that they knew something BAD was here. Since Ash was out cold, on account of his… (ahem…) brawl with Misty, she and Brock agreed to have one person stay up to watch. Brock stayed up, because Misty was worn out from her fight, also because she threatened him. He sat up and held the frying pan, watching and wishing he had a higher rank in the group.

Hours passed, it became darker to pitch black. His head sagged, his eyes closed (you can hardly see the difference) and his hand let go of the pan. He was fast asleep. Around the same time he fell asleep, Ash woke up at that moment. He struggled to see in the dark, but soon he could make out all the shapes. Apparently Misty was sleeping peacefully, as well as Pikachu and Togepi. And Brock, since he was sitting up with the frying pan was next to him, yet his head hung and he was snoring, obviously he was supposed to guard, but he's asleep on the job.

Ash laid his head on the ground, and stayed awake. He wasn't tired now, and since they can't rely on Brock to protect them, then he'd have to be the hero. After half an hour of lying down, doing nothing, Ash had begun to get really bored. He crawled out of the sleeping bag, and stretched himself. Then he remembered what woke him up. He then looked left and right, into the darkness. "Hey, Pikachu. Wake up" he nudged Pikachu.

Pikachu woke up, yawned and stretched. Ash smiled and stroked his head, "Morning, buddy. How are you feeling?" He then looked at Brock and Misty, who were still asleep. "Pikachu, sorry I woke you up this early, but there's kind of a problem. I heard some sounds out there, and I want to go take a look. It might be another trainer, or whoever was being chased. Think you can come and check it out with me?" Pikachu didn't seem too happy with the idea, but he agreed to go.

Quietly, they walked out of the campsite. Ash took the flashlight, in case of an emergency. For protection, he had his full deck of pokéballs and Noctowl in case of ghost pokémon. Pikachu managed to pick up some kind of scent and was following it. Ash followed Pikachu, because surely it would lead to a person, or a pokémon, something that wasn't inanimate.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu said out loud, stopping and standing up. His ears moved upwards.

"What is it Pikachu?" Ash asked, he understood what was going on. Pikachu heard some kind of sound, and when Ash listened carefully, he heard it too.

"Pika!" Pikachu ran in that direction, and Ash followed.

The sound was getting clearer, there was a scratching noise, and squeaks and squeals, as if there was a hurt animal, Ash and Pikachu followed the sound. Then they came to an area, it looked just like the rest of the forest, dark gnarled trees with roots sticking out of the ground. Then they saw what was making the noise.

"A Pikachu!" He gasped. A Pikachu was struggling; it was stuck in some kind of trap. By the looks of it, this Pikachu's leg was tangled up in some tough metal wires. There were teeth marks on the wires, indicating that it had tried to chew them to release its leg, but had no success.

Ash and Pikachu rushed over to help the poor pokémon. As Pikachu spoke with the trapped one, Ash tried hard and untangled the hard wires. The second it was untied, the trapped Pikachu stepped up and looked at Ash and Pikachu. Ash and Pikachu looked at it, it was giving them a strange look, then all of the sudden. Without warning, the Pikachu launched a strong thundershock attack, zapping both Ash and Pikachu. They both yelled out in pain, and Ash fell over on his front. He was twitching a bit from the electricity, but got up.

"What the heck is your problem!?" Ash yelled at the Pikachu

"PIKA!" Pikachu yelled angrily at the one who attacked them. He was upset for the ingratitude.

"His problem…" A voice said, "…Is you."

"What?" Ash spun around and saw a few meters away, standing on a tree root… himself? "Who are you?!" He yelled

The Ash standing on the tree root looked at him strangely "You don't recognize yourself? You must be having some sort of identity crisis…"

"Hey, shut up!" Ash yelled at the impostor. He pointed the flashlight at the other Ash; he looked exactly like Ash did. The voice was a perfect match; the face looked exactly the same, even the lines on the face were exactly like Ash's, and it was the same thing for the clothing. "What are you doing out here copying me?"

"Copying you?" The other Ash spoke, "How do you know you're not the copy?"

"Shut up! I'm real, and I'll prove it!" Ash clenched his fist.

"With a pokémon battle?" The other Ash asked

"Right on!" Ash pulled out one of his pokéballs

"A pokémon match, how predictable…" Other Ash pulled out a pokéball, "I'll let you choose first"

"Fine then! I choose you…!" The background went green, Ash turned his cap and threw the ball. The pokémon materialized, "Noctowl!"

"Noctowl, I saw that one coming!" Other Ash said, the background behind him turned green, he turned his cap and threw the pokéball, "Noctowl! I choose you!"

The pokémon materialized, a yellow coloured, orange winged Noctowl appeared, facing Ash's.

"What?!" Ash saw the colouring on the opponent's Noctowl, "Well whatever! It may be a rare breed of Noctowl, but not one of a kind! Noctowl! Use Quick attack!"

Noctowl hooted and swooped to the opponent's Noctowl. Enemy Ash called the orders to his pokémon "Wing Attack on my mark! Ready… … … NOW!" The enemy Ash's Noctowl swung its wing, slamming Noctowl and halting the attack. Noctowl shook his head, dazed. Not only was enemy Ash's voice and looks the exact same, so were the battle skills.

"Tackle!" Ash yelled quickly. Enemy Noctowl was close by and Noctowl flew and bashed the opponent with a strong hit. "Whirlwind!" Noctowl began flapping his wings violently. Enemy Noctowl was spinning, caught in the tornado and obviously loosing HP fast. Enemy Ash covered his face a bit, shielding his eyes from the dust and wind.

"Noctowl!" Enemy Ash yelled, "It may be a bit windy, but don't let it distract you! Agility and bide, Now!" Enemy Noctowl waited a few more seconds, then straightened himself up, and began flying fast. With the help of agility, he ripped through the wings, despite the injuries. Noctowl had only a few seconds to screech out with shock when he saw the opponent flying through the winds, and slam into him, hard and with the help of agility, did more than twice the damage. Ash's Noctowl fell to the ground, defeated.

"No! Noctowl, return!" Ash growled, "I can't lose this one!" Ash looked at him angrily "I've dealt with illusions and copycats before, and I don't believe for a second that you're me, or even real!" Ash yelled, "Pikachu! Attack!"

"Fine then! Show them whose boss, Pikachu!" Enemy Ash sent his Pikachu to fight.

Both Pikachu's launched electric attacks, one after another, meeting in mid air, cancelling each other out. The enemy's Pikachu sent a spark to the ground, causing an electric bolt to jump from the ground and bounce to Pikachu. Pikachu launched a close range thundershock and deflected the bolt, and then he fired a thunder attack, only to have it shielded by the opponent's own attack.

"Careful Pikachu!" Ash called out, "Although he's not the real one, he's still strong! Use thunder!"

"Pi-ka-CHUUU!" Pikachu shot a large bolt of electricity

"Deflect it with your own thunder buddy!" Enemy Ash called

"Pi-KAAA!" Enemy Pikachu fired an equally strong bolt. The two shots cancelled each other out.

"Pikachu! Use agility!" Ash commanded

"Swift!" Enemy Ash yelled

Wait a minute, where's that faker…?"

His question was answered with a hit on the face. Enemy Ash had swung from a tree branch and kicked Ash in the face. Ash fell backwards, and looked up to see his opponent.

"I don't think it's fair that only our pokémon get to have all the fun!" Enemy Ash said. Ash got up, but enemy Ash punched him in the face, jumped and did a roundhouse kick on Ash's face. Ash flew and fell face first into the dirt. Enemy Ash came running towards him, ready to attack. Ash got up quickly and punched, but enemy Ash moved his head and dodged it easily, then hit Ash again and again. "Face it!" He yelled, slamming Ash on the stomach, "You'll never beat me! I'm way stronger and faster than you!" Ash got up, and punched with his left. Enemy Ash moved his head to the right, dodging it, but that hit was only a decoy. Ash punched with his right, straight into enemy Ash's face. Enemy Ash fell on his back and clenched his face where Ash had punched.

Ash wiped his face, "You may be faster, but stronger? Never! Faster maybe, but you can't even take one punch while I took all those hits! I'm not just stronger, I'm also tougher!"

Enemy Ash sprung up from the ground with his hands and flew feet first into Ash, kicking him on the face, "You really think so?!" Ash fell back, and enemy Ash ran towards him, grabbed the front of Ash's shirt and clenched his fist, "I'm trained and know how to fight, that's the difference that'll win this battle" He looked at the real Ash's face, but Ash was… smiling?

Ash threw a handful of dirt into enemy Ash's face, blinding and hurting him. "An opening!" He punched enemy Ash straight on the neck. Enemy Ash made a gagging sound from that hit. Ash then punched him on the side of the head with a strong hook (slow motion, sweat and drops of blood flies from enemy Ash's face), the stomach (slow motion, enemy Ash coughs gags from the hit), and finished off by kicking him in the groin (slow motion, this one speaks for itself). Enemy Ash's eyes bulged from the last hit. He fell the ground, wheezing.

"You were right, faker!" Ash laughed at him, "That is the difference that'll win the battle! I fight dirty!" Ash looked and saw the two Pikachu's. The enemy's Pikachu was down and Ash's Pikachu had won his battle.

Enemy Ash got up, gasping for air, and speaking in a very, high-pitched voice, "This isn't over! I'll be back! Pikachu, return!" He called back his pokémon into a ball and hobbled into the darkness.

Ash laughed and Pikachu jumped up and gave him a high five, "I guess we showed them a thing or two!" Ash then yelled out into the distance, "Don't come back or I'll do that again Faker! On the other hand, do come back! That was fun, and I wouldn't mind doing it again!"

The faker then ran out of the darkness, with a wicked smile. "Hey real one!" Ash looked at him, "You and your pokémon may be able to tell I'm not the real you, but will the other people?" He laughed, "If I go out and do bad things, looking like you, you're gonna look like a criminal! Think, how all those people, especially the bounty hunter will react when seeing you, and the great big price on your…"

**WHACK!**

The impostor Ash fell over, dazed when Ash threw a rock in his face. "Oh no you're not gonna go out looking like me and doing bad things! Not only is that plan incredibly stupid, it's overused too! Everyone knows if the hero goes bad, it's an evil look alike! There are more 'don't fall for evil impostor' posters than 'don't do drugs' ads out there!" Ash walked over and kicked him, "However, since you were planning to do bad things anyway…"

"What are you going to do to me?" Impostor Ash asked nervously and sweatdropped. Ash put his hands on the impostor's shoulders…

Two minutes later

"!#!$-ING DAMN IT!!! You !#$ LET ME DOWN NOW!" Impostor Ash yelled, hanging upside down, six feet in the air, arms tied, and his legs bound together and dangling from a tree branch. The real Ash turned around, looked at the impostor's face and smiled cheerfully.

"Hey, before you challenged me, you should've thought of the consequences!" He looked at him "And If you're gonna talk that way to me, then I'm not gonna let you down. And since you were intending to use my looks, voice and identity to frame me for doing bad things, I oughta leave you here until autumn so you can fall with all the leaves" Ash walked forwards to the impostor who hung upside-down and took his pokémon league cap and examined it, "You're really dedicated to your faking you know that? You even went out and got yourself an AUTHENTIC pokémon league cap! One which I could sell for big bucks online. And I think I'll take this too" Ash pulled out the guy's wallet as well, pulled out the HUGE wad of cash. As he walked away, he threw the empty wallet to the ground.

The impostor started swearing again, but they just ignored it.

Pikachu ran to Ash, "Pika, Pikachu" he said

"Don't worry Pikachu, he'll be fine. I'm not really intending to leave him there until autumn" Ash said, "Those ropes aren't THAT strong. The one dangling him from the branch is weak, and will break in a few hours. Of course, he will be getting a nasty headache when the rope breaks, especially with those rocks I put underneath…" Ash laughed.

As they walked away, the only thing that could be heard in the forest was the loud profanity, but with the 'tree falling in the woods' bit, no one was around to hear it. The impostor gave up closed his eyes, the acting like Ash and running around wreaking havoc wasn't a very good idea, and running back to the field just to tell real Ash his evil scheme definitely wasn't a good idea. But what the real Ash just did to him, beat him up, take the money, hang him upside down from a tree, this meant war…

Ash and Pikachu headed back to the camp. Whoever that faker was, he was probably the guy making all those sounds in the night, trying to scare them, but now that they knew he was weaker then them and could be beaten without too much trouble, they had nothing to fear about this forest! Ash fixed things up good.

Back at the camp, Brock and Misty were still asleep. Ash checked the time and saw that it was still very early. Pikachu curled up and fell asleep, and Ash noticed the frying pan Brock held. He was supposed to stay up and watch for the night.

"The faker's ropes are gonna snap in a few hours, and when they do, he's not very likely to be in a very good mood." Ash spoke quietly, then scowled at Brock "Even if Brock did stay awake, there is no way could protect any of us with that thing" Ash said to himself, "We need a smarter plan." Quietly, he took out a pokéball and released one of his pokémon. (You don't see which one, just a small black shape.) Ash kneeled over and started whispering some orders to it (you don't hear them either. You just see their silhouettes from a distance) Ash picked up a particularly large tree limb, broke the smaller twigs and branches off and held it like a club. Then, with a bit of effort, he climbed one of the trees surrounding them, and sat on a thick sturdy branch, holding the club.

"If the faker comes here, I'll be ready"

A few more hours passed, it was almost dawn. A bit of sunlight broke passed through the leaves. Ash dozed off in his watch. While he was asleep, Brock woke up and checked the time. This was the hour Ash wanted them to wake them up. He saw Ash's sleeping bag, his head was covered up completely.

"Why does Ash sleep like that? Even he knows he wouldn't be able to breathe under the covers" Brock said, "Oh well, better wake him up before he suffocates." He walked over to the sleeping bag and nudged it, no response. He nudged it again, harder. No response. "Geez, he must still be out cold after Misty hit him. Ash, wake up!" He shook it hard, but no response came, "Oh come on! Even she couldn't hit you that hard!" He pulled open the covers…

"TCHRHAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIILE!" It was too dark to see everything, but a monster's face lit up in the darkness, revealing a hideous face, with sharp pointed fangs, a series of bloody red spines, dark red glowing eyes and black markings leaped up and hissed loudly in his face.

"GHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!" Brock screamed

The noise immediately woke Ash up. Instantly, he clenched the club, and jumped down from the tree. He could see the shape of a person, but it was too dark to see who it was exactly. But that didn't matter, "SO YOU'VE COME BACK, FAKER! COME TO FOOL MY FRIENDS AND LEAD THEM INTO A TRAP?! WELL YOU JUST STEPPED INTO MINE!!! MUAHAHAHAHHAHAH!" Ash jumped up and down, laughing manically, and continuously whacking his head "TAKE THAT AND THAT AND THAT AND THAT…" He slammed Brock on the head, again and again.

"Ash?! What's going on?!" Misty yelled, pointing a large flashlight, illuminating the whole scene. Ash had the club raised over his head and was about to swing down again. Apparently, the scary monster with the red spikes and fangs was Totodile, using the scary face attack. Ash sweatdropped when he looked down. Face flat on the ground, with several huge lumps on his head, it was Brock. "I hope you've got a good explanation, because he's not very likely to be in a very good mood when he wakes up" Misty looked at him.

"Well Misty… it's like this…" Ash began to explain

(Later)

Brock sat on the ground, holding an ice pack over his head. He turned his head and looked at Ash, "So let me gave this straight. You walked into the forest and saw an evil clone of you, in which you engaged in a pokémon battle and a fistfight, leading you to setting up a trap for him in case he returns, and causing you to brutally attack me?"

"Well… yes" Ash nodded nervously

"Heh…" Brock looked down and chuckled… "YOU FREAKING MORON! IS THAT HAT ON TOO TIGHT?! IS IT KEEPING THE AIR FROM REACHING YOUR BRAIN?! THAT WAS BY FAR THE STUPIDEST THING I HAVE EVER HEARD YOU SAY, AND THAT IS SAYING SOMETHING!!!!" Brock slammed Ash over the head with a mallet, then sighed "We're still not even. I don't want to kill you right now, because I wanna get out of this forest safely. Still, I can't promise I'll restrain myself from any strangling if you start imagining things again"

"Ow… Brock!" Ash spoke "I didn't imagine it!"

"And give that back!" Misty snatched the mallet out of Brock's hands, "Don't you EVER use this without my permission!" She waved it threateningly in Brock's face

Brock sweatdropped, then turned to Ash "Now Ash, I could understand you're young and have a very active imagination, but even YOU have your limits. As the oldest one here, I feel responsible to ask, you weren't… intoxicated with anything?" Brock patted his shoulder "You know what I'm talking about, right? I mean… there wasn't any alcohol involved… or anything illegal, right? Like cannabis? It must have been cannabis… was it cannabis?"

"Hey! I wasn't drunk!" Ash yelled, insulted, "And what about that cannabis remark?! I have never been so insulted in my life! ARE YOU SAYING I EAT OTHER PEOPLE?!"

Everyone but Ash sweatdropped, then Misty spoke up "Can we please change the subject? Ash told us everything of what he saw, and I believe him!"

"(Yeah, take ASH'S side over mine ya scrawny orange hag)" Brock muttered.

"What was that?" Misty glared at him, and clutched the mallet tightly

"Nothing! Nothing…" Brock sweatdropped backed off.

"Well anyways, I don't want to stay in this place any longer!" Ash said, "We're all packed, so let's go!"

(Location- Dark Forest outpost)

"What's that light up ahead?" Misty asked

"I don't know" Ash said

"It might be Teal Ville!" Brock said hopefully

They all rushed ahead, but were disappointed. It was only a plain shack covered with sheet metal and wood and stuff.

"(Tsk!) It's just some ugly shack!" Misty said angrily, "No doubt some hillbilly or…"

"In the dark, you should prepare for trouble!" A woman's voice spoke

"The nightmares is real, so make it double!" A man's voice rang out

Jessie leaped from the trees, onto the shack, holding a microphone "To protect the world from devastation!"

James jumped out from the branch, but slipped a little, and fell to the ground. Slowly and painfully, he climbed to the top of the shack. "(Grunt) To unite all people within our nation!"

"To denounce…!" (Lights turn off and speakers are out)

"Hey, what happened?" James asked

They looked down and saw Misty holding something.

"I am so sick and tired of that motto!" She said, then held up an unplugged cord, "So I pulled the plug on you guys!"

Jessie growled, "How dare you interrupt the motto!"

"Motto or no motto! When we're done with you, you'll be singing a different tune!" Ash said, "I can see you didn't bring reinforcements today!"

"We don't need reinforcements, because we got a secret weapon!" Meowth said, then whispered to Jessie and James "Where was the secret weapon?"

"We didn't bring one" they answered, "The boss said he won't sponsor our weapons anymore, until we pay him in full for what we owe him."

"How much is that?"

"Well… if we captured Articuno and Zapdos by the end of the week… we'd still owe him fifty more pokémon, plus Pikachu" said James

"Argh! Whatever!" Jessie turned around, "We don't need any secret weapon! We've been training hard, and our levels have nearly doubled! Why don't we demonstrate our newfound power?"

"We're not the same Team Rocket you've always known! We use the power of Teamwork! We're not only stronger, but better than before!" James called

"And in a few more levels, I'll evolve into a Persian!" Meowth got up and flexed his arms in a mock muscleman pose.

"Arbok! Wobuffet! Attack!" Jessie threw the pokéballs

"Victreebell! I choose you!" James threw his pokéball

Victreebell screeched, but James didn't even shake. Instead of jumping up and trying to eat James, it dove down and engulfed Meowth.

"I told you! I trained it so that it'll only attack pokémon!" James laughed

"You could have trained it NOT to attack team members!" Meowth crawled out of Victreebell, dashed to James and slashed his face.

"I was always five times stronger than you ever were, and higher levels from you means more exp. for me!" Ash said, and then turned his cap and threw the pokéball "Time to use one of my veterans. Kingler! I choose you!"

"Co-KING!!" Kingler growled

"Arbok! Attack from a distance with poison sting!" Jessie ordered. Arbok opened his mouth and fired hundreds of poisonous needles.

"Bubble attack!" Ash ordered. Hundreds of bubbles flew out of Kingler's mouth and hit the needles. Each bubble popped when hit with a needle, but each needle was erased on contact.

"Whoa! I've never seen a poison sting attack like that before!" Brock exclaimed, "Arbok's able to use rapid fire poison sting! Ash is gonna have a hard time beating them now!"

"Well then let's help him, instead of just standing around!" Misty pulled out a pokéball and tossed it, "Staryu! Go!"

"HA!" The starfish yelled

"Geodude! Go!" Brock threw Geodude's pokéball

"Geo-DUDE!"

"Victreebell! Razor Leaf!" James shouted out the orders. Victreebell screeched, and fired two large, sharp leaves. Geodude slammed one to the ground with his fist, and Staryu hit the other with a water gun. But as the two pokémon countered those ones, it left an opening. "Use multiple leech seeds!!" James yelled. Victreebell fired a barrage seeds from its mouth. Staryu moved fast and barely dodged them, but Geodude wasn't fast enough. The seed opened up and ensnared him with vines.

"Geodude!" Brock yelled, "Ah! Not only is James stronger, he's got the elemental advantage!"

"We can't let him win!" Misty called out to Staryu, "Staryu! Show them it takes more than elements to win this! Swift attack!"

"Ha!" Staryu straightened up and fired bright, sharp stars at Victreebell. Victreebell screeched in pain from the stinging stars, but other than stinging, they didn't to much damage. "That didn't work! Quickly, use double edge!" Staryu turned sideways and spun towards Victreebell like a shuriken, but this attack meant that it'd be perfectly aligned in front of Victreebell.

"Now Victreebell! Show them the power of a fully evolved Team Rocket pokémon! Stun spores!" Victreebell leaned forwards and the leaf covering its mouth moved, opening it. Then a cloud of orange powder flew out, and Staryu flew right into it. The second it flew into the stun spores, it felt a stinging sensation, and stiffened up to the point where it couldn't move. Staryu dropped to the ground.

"Oh no!" Misty yelled

"Oh yes! Use Vine whip!" James yelled down from the roof. Victreebell spun and the long, whip-like vine on its back stretched and hit Staryu into Geodude. Both flew and hit a tree, then dropped to the ground.

"Ah!" Misty yelled, "He beat us!"

"I don't believe it!" Brock said, "But we're not beat until every one of our pokémon are down!" He pulled out all of his pokéballs and threw them

"That's right! You're strong, but you're using only two pokémon against this many! Let's see how you deal with strength in numbers!" Misty threw all her pokéballs, releasing every one of her pokémon. James gulped and sweatdropped nervously. He had just bitten off more than he could chew, and he gonna choke.

Meanwhile, there was another heated battle. Standing back to back with James, facing the opposite direction from James' battle was Jessie.

"Kingler!" Ash yelled, "Bubblebeam!" He turned his head called to his other Pokémon, "Bayleef! Vine whip!"

"Arbok, Dig! Wobuffet! Counter!" Jessie yelled. Arbok dove into the ground just in time to miss the beam of thick foam and bubbles, and Wobuffet raised the counter so Bayleef's vines bounced off and flew back and whipped the owner. Arbok came bursting out of the ground right under Kingler, knocking him over.

"Arbok! Bite!" Jessie yelled

"CHAARBOK!" Arbok hissed and opened his jaws, ready to chomp the crab.

"Quick! Use crab hammer!" Ash yelled. Quickly, Kingler swung his large claw and slammed Arbok across the face, sending it flying and hitting a tree. But Arbok was stronger than before, and therefore got up and could still fight. Ash turned to Bayleef "Bayleef! Ignore Wobuffet and focus on Arbok! That way, it couldn't do anything!" Bayleef obeyed and didn't attack Wobuffet. It turned its attention to Arbok and attacked.

"Arbok! Use… use…!" Jessie stumbled; she didn't know what to do. Arbok couldn't beat those two pokémon at once, "You stupid blue lunk!" She yelled at Wobuffet, "How come you don't have any offensive attacks?"

"Waaaaaa-buffet!" Wobuffet saluted

Arbok dropped to the ground, he couldn't take any more punishment. Ash looked at Jessie, and James standing up on that roof, then smiled a nasty grin. "Heh… we win." Ash then pointed at the shack, "Kingler!"

Jessie sweatdropped nervously, "What… are you doing?"

"Hyper beam the shack!" Ash shouted. Kingler aimed his gigantic claw. It started to glow and yellow energy gathered at the center, followed by a powerful beam. The beam took a gigantic chunk out of a corner of the shack. It looked just like it had been bitten out. The shack started to bend…

Jessie and James sweatdropped, "Looks like Team Rocket's…" The shack fell over on one side, and Jessie & James fell head first to the ground. "…Grounded again… ouch" They moaned. Ash struck a pose, he had just one his battle. Further away, Pikachu was fighting his battle.

"SLASH!" Meowth extended his claws and swiped. Pikachu barely moved in time to dodge. Meowth turned his head and faced Pikachu. Pikachu launched a thunderbolt, but Meowth jumped out of the way easily. He landed behind Pikachu and scratched him. Angry, Pikachu swung hit tail and slapped Meowth in the face hard. Meowth growled and swiped again, but Pikachu moved. Meowth laughed as he extended his claws and ran towards Pikachu "And you thought you could beat me that easily… I'm really enjoying this game of Cat and Mouse! And to think!" he slashed, Pikachu ducked, but it hit his ear. Pikachu leaped and head butted Meowth's face and thunder shocked him, but not damaging him too much. He jumped back several meters away and crossed his arms. "I've levelled up and increased my speed, strength and defence! When I win this battle, I'm gonna be the bosses favourite once again!"

Pikachu's ears moved up. Meowth was strong, much more than he had expected, he was in a completely different level from the other two, and nothing like he was before. Meowth ran towards Pikachu, uncrossing his arms and extending his claws. He was gonna finish Pikachu off… "Pikaaa…!" Pikachu ran towards Meowth, cheeks sparking with electricity.

"HAAA!" Meowth leaped and slashed, "Oop?" He blinked and landed on his feet, Pikachu was nowhere to be seen!

Pikachu knew if he tried went for the 'samurai finish' against Meowth, he'd lose. He took a much smarter one. He had jumped at the last moment and dodged the slash. Pikachu landed from the air, right behind Meowth. He jumped and hung onto Meowth's back and bit hard. Meowth screamed and tried to shake Pikachu off. Pikachu's cheeks started sparking.

"PI-KA-CHUUUUUU" He zapped Meowth with a powerful Thunder attack, and at that range, he had 100 accuracy.

Meowth's body smoked, but he could still fight. His eyes flashed as he tried to use leer, but Pikachu ran a different direction. Pikachu ran to a tree, jumped to the trunk and kicked off, flying towards Meowth. Spinning rapidly, sparking, he rammed head first into Meowth, sending him flying.

Meowth was thrown to the ground. He hit it hard, and fell face down near Jessie and James. He raised his head and tried to get up, "Ah, shoot. And I was just about to beat you too…" he moaned, and his face dropped to the ground. He twitched and his shoulders jerked a bit, but then stopped moving.

"ALL RIGHT!" Ash, Misty and Brock high-fived, they won! "No matter how strong you are, Team Rocket…!" Ash spoke, holding up his peace sign

"We'll always be stronger!" Misty also held it up

(Clap, clap, clap) Ash, Misty, Brock and Pikachu heard the sound of clapping. They all turned around and saw who was doing it. "Very impressive," He clapped, "As weak as those three clowns were, they've gotten a lot stronger than before… and you still managed to beat them" They looked at who it was. It was an aged man, most likely in his 50's. He had a pointed nose, and his hair was black and going grey in some places. He wore a red bandana around his neck, a red beret and white gloves that reached to his elbows. He had black pants and shirt, with a big, red 'R'. It was a Team Rocket member!

"You're part of Team Rocket!" Ash exclaimed

The man laughed, then spoke calmly "It's true, I am part of Team Rocket, but I'm not just any Team Rocket Member!" He pulled out a pokéball, "My real name is classified information, only Giovanni knows. But unlike that teenager show-off Domino with that 'Black Tulip' super spy code name, I prefer to be addressed by my status." He looked at them and smiled, a nasty one, "You can call me 001"

"001!?" They all yelled, and pulled out pokéballs

"You're a Team Rocket Elite!" Ash yelled

"And you're Ash Ketchum…" said 001, "You've become a real thorn in Team Rocket's side, you've defeated our agents by the hundreds… but you'll find that I'm different."

"We'll just have to see about that!" Ash said, reaching for a pokéball…

001 laughed, "Giovanni will give me a nice big reward for bringing you in as prisoners. You've been causing them a lot of trouble, you know? And there is a nice big bounty on your head…"

"Get ready…" Ash said to his friends

"I may only have one pokémon" He held up the pokéball, "But that way, I could concentrate more on making him stronger instead of wasting time with other weaker ones. One pokémon is all I need. One exceedingly powerful pokémon…" he started laughing, "POKÉBALL! GO!" 001 threw the pokéball. All Ash, Misty and Brock could do is watch and wait to see what pokémon will come out when it hits the ground…

_What pokémon is 001 going to use? Will Ash, Misty and Brock stand a chance against an Elite? And what about that Ash impostor? Find out more, in the next chapter!_

(TO BE CONTINUED)


	4. Pokémon vs Predator

Chapter 4- Pokémon Vs. Predator

(Location- Dark Forest Outpost)

"Here it comes!" Ash yelled. The pokéball 001 threw hit the ground and opened. In a bright flash of light, a pokémon materialized, a large pokémon. It there it stood, over two metres high, a fully trained, powerful Tyranitar…

"A Tyranitar…!" Brock gasped, "No… not just any Tyranitar… it's huge!" he exclaimed. He was right. Being a breeder, he was able to tell the strength of pokémon by looking at it, and this Tyranitar was incredible, "It's got to be at least level 100!"

"Level 100, eh?" Ash answered, then turned his cap and threw his pokéballs, "Then we can't afford to hold back… not even one bit! Everybody! Go!"

The pokéballs opened up, adding Totodile, Noctowl, Cyndaquil, the last of Ash's six-pokémon deck to the battle.

"None of you may be as strong as him" Ash said to the pokémon, "But let's show him the power of teamwork!" Misty and Brock had already called out their pokémon, so they were set. "Everybody… attack!" Ash yelled

"ATTACK!" 001 Shouted. Before the pokémon could react to Ash's command, Tyranitar charged, flailing his arms and tail wildly, breaking the group apart and scattering them. "Heh, alright Tyranitar! Use Mega Punch!" 001 called out

Tyranitar roared, and charged. He swung his massive fist and slammed Bayleef into a tree and smashing right through it.

"AH! No! Bayleef!" Ash yelled

"He took it out in one hit!" Brock gasped

"Alright! Now slam that Kingler!" 001 pointed at the giant crab.

"Kingler! Quickly, crab-hammer the face before…!" Ash didn't even have to finish the sentence for Kingler to get the point. Quickly, he smacked the Tyranitar in the face with the heavy claw. Tyranitar was surprised by the blow and stumbled.

"And opening!" Misty yelled. Every pokémon on the field fired an attack, and they all flew towards the giant pokémon's back.

"Tyranitar! Use rage!" 001 commanded. Tyranitar stood upright as each attack slammed him on the back, hurting him, but not necessarily harming it.

"No!" Ash yelled

Tyranitar turned around and growled. That round of attacks just made it stronger.

"We're dead…" Ash shook

"No, wait a minute Ash! If Tyranitar's doing a rage attack, then he's gone berserk and 001 won't be able to control it!" Brock told him

001 crossed his arms and smiled "It's only like that for you rookie trainers. I trained mine specially to obey me, no matter what!" He laughed, "Tyranitar! Crush these insects!" He pointed at Onix, "Begin with that Onix!" Tyranitar roared and charged.

"Onix! Hurry! DIG!" Brock yelled. Onix dived into the ground quickly, barely dodging Tyranitar.

"You think that'll save you?" 001 spoke, "Well guess again! Use FISSURE!" Tyranitar roared and with all his might, he literally ripped the ground apart. The ground split and looked like an earthquake had torn it up. "All right Tyranitar! GET HIM!" 001 laughed. Tyranitar dived into the deep crevice. Some roaring could be heard, from both Onix and Tyranitar. There was a loud smashing sound. "Good work Tyranitar! Now seismic toss that snake!" Tyranitar jumped out of the darkness of the deep cleft, holding Onix over his head. With all his might, Tyranitar hurled the rock snake to the ground.

"ONIX! NO!" Brock yelled and ran to the injured pokémon. Onix was all cracked and hurt. There were numerous chunks missing from the rocks and the body was covered with scratches "Onix! Speak to me!"

Onix let out a weak groan, indicating that it was still alive, although not very much.

"Onix…" Brock spoke sadly. This was the second time Onix had been pulverized by a Tyranitar. Brock's sad expression changed into an angry one, "Tyranitar! You're going to pay for that! PINECO! EXPLOSION!"

"What?!" Ash gasped

"He's not gonna…!" Misty spoke

Brock held the glowing pokémon over his head, and hurled it at Tyranitar like a bomb. Pineco hit Tyranitar in the face, followed by a huge explosion.

"WA!" Ash yelled, turning his head and covering his face from the smoke

"GYA!" Misty also yelled and covered her eyes.

001 didn't say anything. He just stood there and growled. The smoke cleared, and Tyranitar was still strong, well standing anyways. It held one hand over a wound on its right arm, and it's left eye was closed. The entire left side of its face had been burned. Some of the spikes on his head and a few on his back were chipped or broken off.

"Amazing! Brock knew that no attack could defeat Tyranitar completely, so he used a kamikaze to weaken him!" Ash exclaimed

"That attack was a critical hit and must have taken away a lot of Tyranitar's HP!"

"It'll take more than that to take Tyranitar down! Use fury attack!" 001 yelled

Tyranitar flailed his limbs and thrashed wildly. The pokémon were sent flying everywhere.

"Grrr!" Ash growled. Tyranitar swung his arm and smacked Crobat out of the air like a fly. The only one he hadn't hit was Totodile.

"Tyranitar! Stomp!" 001 yelled. Tyranitar raised his foot, ready to stomp the little pokémon flat.

"Totodile, bite him!" Ash yelled. Tyranitar stomped his foot to the ground, but Totodile moved, then jumped up and bit Tyranitar hard on the shin. Tyranitar roared in annoyance. The bite hadn't really hurt him, but it was very irritating. Tyranitar tried to shake Totodile off, but its jaws were locked on.

As Tyranitar was occupied with Totodile, the others who had been hit were quickly recovering. "Geodude, do you think you're up for another battle?" asked Brock

"GEO!" It responded

"Perfect!" Brock snapped his fingers

"And could you handle another fight Staryu?" Misty asked. She got the same answer Brock got from Geodude.

Ash watched Tyranitar try to shake Totodile off. Totodile's jaws were starting to ache and he was sweating.

"Staryu! Attack from behind with double edge!"

"Geodude! Use a mega punch!"

Tyranitar turned his head and saw the two pokémon flying at him. He swung one arm and hit Geodude, and his tail slammed Staryu. The two were thrown back, but slowly got back up. This fight was too serious give up.

Ash saw this, and called out another attack for Totodile to use, "Totodile, use CRUNCH!" Totodile opened his mouth and let go from the bite attack. He held on with his hands to the shin, opened his mouth wide, and snapped at Tyranitar's ankle.

Tyranitar's eyes opened wide. The bite penetrated his thick hide and was really, really painful. It grabbed Totodile by the head with one hand, ripped the pokémon off, threw it into the air and slammed it hard with its fist, sending it flying and crashing into a tree.

"AN OPENING!" Ash yelled. Tyranitar turned his head just in time to see Geodude strike with his rocky fists and Staryu spinning straight into him. The two pokémon slammed Tyranitar's face, causing him to stumble back and fall to the ground. "Everybody! While he's down!" Ash yelled. All the pokémon dived onto Tyranitar, biting, scratching, whipping, or using whatever special they could use to hurt it.

"Grrr… Tyranitar! Use fury attack!" 001 yelled. From under the big mass, Tyranitar burst, throwing, punching, slashing, kicking or slamming with his tail at all the pokémon around him. They were thrown into different directions.

"Even after all those attacks, Tyranitar just keeps on going!" Misty gasped

"What did you expect? I've been training him since before you were born! This pokémon is unbeatable!" said 001

"That's what you think! Pikachu, use Swift!" Ash yelled

"Rock Throw, Geodude!" Brock yelled

"Staryu! Water Gun!" Misty yelled

"Counter them and attack!" 001 yelled. Tyranitar shielded himself from the water jet with one arm. That arm also shielded his face from the hundreds of stinging little stars coming from Pikachu. He swung his other arm and smashed a stone that was thrown at him by Geodude. The round of attacks finished, and it was his turn. Tyranitar roared and charged at the three pokémon.

"PIKA?!"

"HA!"

"Geo-DUDE!"

Tyranitar grabbed Geodude and slammed him into Staryu, and then threw the rock pokémon to the side.

"Staryu! No!" Misty yelled, then remembered on of its moves. "Recover!" Staryu got up and glowed. Its wounds healed and it regained a lot of HP.

"Man, that Tyranitar wouldn't know when to quit if it bit him in the face! Speaking of which, use mega drain Crobat!" Brock yelled. Crobat swooped out of the darkness, mouth wide open, fangs bared; it snapped Tyranitar right in the face. Tyranitar slammed the Crobat away from him, but the damage was done. A fair amount of HP was not only lost, it was given to Crobat.

"Kingler! Bubblebeam! Noctowl! Use quick attack!" Ash yelled

Kingler fired a huge wave of thick foam and bubbles at Tyranitar. Tyranitar popped them with as much ease as a child would have with a plastic bubble blower. But this left an opening. Noctowl swooped out of the air and slammed across Tyranitar's face. It's arm quickly shot out and grabbed Noctowl by the neck. Noctowl screeched in pain as Tyranitar squeezed with a crushing grip, which would soon snap Noctowl like a twig.

"Crobat! Hurry, use confuse ray!" Brock yelled. Immediately, the entire area went totally black, and a few bright flashes of light could be seen. Then the dim light in the forest returned, and Tyranitar was staggering, struggling to stay on its feet from the attack. While it was dazed, Noctowl released itself from Tyranitar's grip, and pecked at it's face before flying a fair distance away. Every one of the team's pokémon got up. All of them were about at half HP and some were fainted, but the ones up were able to fight.

"We have to stop attacking individually! Surround Tyranitar and attack from all sides!" Ash yelled

"Follow Ash's lead!" Misty told her pokémon.

"Listen to Ash's orders!" Brock called out to his pokémon

Tyranitar looked left and right. In every direction, all around him, there was a circle of pokémon, and even above him there were flying types.

"All right!" Ash said, "Water gun!" Every water pokémon moved in front of Tyranitar and fired a combined high-pressured water jet at Tyranitar. Tyranitar dug his feet to the ground and shielded himself with his arms in the "X" position

"All water pokémon, stop firing and then shoot again in two seconds! Politoed! Use ice beam on the water guns when they fire!" Misty yelled. Politoed stretched out his hands and fired a beam of ice as the water guns resumed firing. The water froze into solid ice, flying at a high speed. The solid ice pillar smashed into Tyranitar.

"Tyranitar's too strong and he'd break out of the ice if it froze him, so an impact attack is a much better solution!" Misty said

"Great idea Misty!" Ash gave her a thumb-up, and then pointed at Tyranitar "Time to feel the burn! Flamethrower Cyndaquil!" Ash yelled. Cyndaquil opened his mouth and fired a huge burst of flames at Tyranitar. The flames stopped, and Tyranitar was still standing. His body was bruised and some spikes were cracked and chipped, but he wasn't really hurt. He looked angrier than anything else.

"Death from above! Attack from the air, flyers!" Ash yelled

"Enough playing around Tyranitar! Now show them what you're truly made of!" 001 yelled. As Noctowl and Crobat swooped down, Tyranitar grabbed them out of mid-air, and bashed their heads together.

"Ah! Noctowl!" Ash yelled

"No, Crobat!" Brock yelled

Tyranitar tossed their limp bodies aside. He looked left and right, he was completely surrounded. Tyranitar then jumped into the air and stomped the ground hard. He sent a shockwave through the ground, tripping all of the pokémon surrounding him. As they fell, Tyranitar charged forwards and attacked.

"What?!" Ash yelled

"I don't believe it! Tyranitar did an earthquake attack, and when the pokémon tripped, he used that as an opening!" Brock exclaimed

Tyranitar slammed Totodile with his tail. Geodude lunged forwards to punch, but both of Tyranitar's hands caught him, and he rammed Geodude with his head, dazing the rock pokémon. He swung Geodude hurled it at Kingler, knocking him over, but not knocking it out. Tyranitar outstretched his arms and charged at Kingler. Kingler's claw shot slammed it with a crab hammer attack, stunning Tyranitar. Kingler then clamped his claw over Tyranitar's head. Tyranitar swung his heavy tail over and bashed Kingler. The crab immediately lost its grip and fell to the ground. He looked and saw Cyndaquil. Cyndaquil backed off a bit in fear, and then opened his mouth and fired a flamethrower. The flames didn't stop Tyranitar from charging, and Tyranitar punched to the ground, but Cyndaquil moved and dodged the hit. Tyranitar spun and tried to slam him with it's tail, but Cyndaquil also moved and dodged it. Tyranitar then lashed out, Cyndaquil dodged each hit, but Tyranitar punched to the ground, and Cyndaquil jumped up. As it was in the air, it couldn't dodge or anything, and Tyranitar spun and slammed it with his tail. Cyndaquil went down hard. Tyranitar looked behind him, the next one was Pikachu.

"Pikachu… use thunderbolt!" Ash yelled

"Pi-ka-CHUUU!!!" Pikachu fired the attack, but Tyranitar didn't even seem to feel the hit… "PIKA!" As Tyranitar charged, Pikachu ran and slipped under its legs and ran.

"Corsola! I choose you!" Misty threw a pokéball, releasing the coral pokémon, "Use ancient power…"

"TYRAN-NITAR!" Before Corsola could do an attack, Tyranitar slammed to pokémon into submission.

"HA!" Staryu fired a water gun at Tyranitar

"PI-KA-CHUUUU!" Pikachu used thunder on the water jet. Tyranitar screamed when the electrically charged water hit his body. Because of the water, electric attacks now affected him. Ash and Misty stood behind Pikachu and Staryu.

"Pikachu! You and Staryu are the only ones left! Be careful!" Ash said

"We cannot lose to him, otherwise it'll be all over for all of us!" Misty said

"Look at him!" Ash said, "He's injured and slowed down, cracked and he has a burn status damage! He shouldn't be able to last much longer!"

"Well neither could you, and Tyranitar always outlasts his opponents!" 001 yelled, "Tyranitar! Use thrash!"

"Move away Pikachu! That attack will finish you off!"

Staryu flew into the air, safe from Tyranitar, but the same couldn't be said for Pikachu. Tyranitar lashed out and punched. Pikachu dodged and Tyranitar's fist cracked the tree. Tyranitar stomped, attempting to crush Pikachu, but Pikachu ran.

"Swift attack!" Ash and Misty yelled at the same time. Hundreds of stinging little stars flew, and each one hit Tyranitar. Tyranitar charged forwards, but Pikachu and Staryu split.

"We can't keep up like this!" Ash said

"We need a stronger attack that'll affect it!" Misty said, "Staryu! Use…" In a bright flash of light, one of Misty's pokéballs opened up, and out came Psyduck. "That's what we need! Psyduck! Use confusion!"

"Psy?" Psyduck leaned his head over to the side, completely clueless.

Misty sighed, "I forgot… he needs a headache…"

Tyranitar charged and swung his fist, to hit Psyduck,

"Tyranitar! STOP!" 001 yelled

"Tar?" Tyranitar's fist was only inches away from Psyduck's head.

"That pokémon is a living bomb! If you hit that thing, then we're dead!" 001 yelled

As 001 was telling Tyranitar about the danger of hitting Psyduck, Ash and Misty took that opportunity to hit.

"Staryu! Double edge!"

"Pikachu! Skull bash!"

From the left, Staryu spun like a shuriken and slammed across Tyranitar's face. Right after that, Pikachu shot from the right and bashed the other side of Tyranitar's face with his head. Tyranitar stumbled backwards, dazed from the two hits. He then regained his posture and flailed at them with his tail. Staryu flew through the air and Pikachu moved around, both of them dodged the tail. Tyranitar roared in fury and swung his tail downwards, but Pikachu and Staryu moved…

"Tyranitar! NO!" 001 yelled. Tyranitar looked, his tail was just above Psyduck's head. One more centimetre and he would have unleashed the full fury of Psyduck.

"AN OPENING!"

Staryu fired a water gun, and Pikachu electrified it. Tyranitar roared in pain as it felt electricity surge through its body. The attack ended, Tyranitar roared out in rage and tried to walk, but stumbled. It was moving a lot slower now.

"YES!" Ash yelled, "Not only is his HP down and burned, but he's also paralyzed!"

"We make a great team!" Misty cheered, and high-fived Ash

Tyranitar roared. He tried to charge forwards, but he was shaking and couldn't keep his balance easily, he felt weaker and heavier than he ever did in his life. Pikachu and Staryu charged towards him, and he couldn't move fast enough to counter and hit. They slammed into him, Staryu spinning around him and hitting him, Pikachu running, ramming into him or whipping him with an electrically charged tail. (Slow motion) he looked forwards, Staryu spun right in front and Pikachu was still in mid-air. Quickly, before anyone could react, he smashed the two pokémon with a very strong hook. The two were thrown a few meters away and landed painfully on the ground. Tyranitar growled, he could move, not very easily, but more than enough to do a finishing attack.

Tyranitar roared and jumped into the air, arms and legs outstretched, he was going to use Body Slam on Pikachu and Staryu! Pikachu and Staryu rolled out of the way…

(CRASH!) Tyranitar landed

"NO!" 001 yelled… not only did miss… but he landed on Psydyck!

Tyranitar lay on the ground on his stomach. He was sore all over and had little HP left. The worst part was that he missed, and doing that attack really, really hurt. Suddenly, there was a strange blue glow on his body. Tyranitar was lifted into the air, and Psyduck stood up, not looking clueless any more. Psyduck was glowing, and his eyes shone deep blue. Psyduck raised his hand into the air, and swung it, as if he were throwing a baseball. Tyranitar flew through the air and crashed through several trees. Psyduck slapped into empty air, and Tyranitar went spinning at a nauseous speed. Then Psyduck pointed his hand upwards, and Tyranitar was shot higher into the air, his body ripped through the thick leaves blocking the light, and letting in a ray of sunlight. Psyduck turned hand and put his thumbs down. Up in the air, Tyranitar hung upside down, and then plummeted to the ground. There was a loud crash, and it looked like a meteorite had hit the earth. The dust cleared. Tyranitar was standing on its head. There was one weak groan, and Tyranitar's legs and tail fell to the ground, so it was flat on its back… Tyranitar was defeated!

"Tyranitar has fainted! We Won!" Ash cheered. Everyone cheered. They had defeated Tyranitar!

"Tyranitar, return!" 001 called back the giant pokémon. "This isn't over! Take this!" 001 hurled three large metal rings. They opened up and then clamped around Ash, Misty and Brock, pinning their arms to their waists. A small red light on each of the ring flashed, and a clicking sound could be heard.

"WHOA!" Brock yelled

"AHH!" Misty fell over

"GRRR…!" Ash struggled, trying to break free, but it was no use.

"Heh… struggle all you want! It'll do you no good! Those rings can easily hold a Rhydon…"

"You may have us tied up, but you forgot one thing! Pikachu, thunder attack!" Ash yelled

"Pi-ka-CHUUUU!!!!" Pikachu sparked and fired his strongest attack.

"GWAAAA!" everyone yelled. Besides 001, all the trainers were shocked. Apparently the metal attracted the lightning.

"HA!" Staryu fired a powerful blast of water into 001, sending him flying. "AHHHH! I'm blasting off!" He yelled as he flew over the horizon.

The rings all sparked, and the red lights faded. The locks opened up and they fell to the floor, useless.

"Ah… that's better," Ash looked up, "We did it!" Ash exclaimed, "We've defeated a Team Rocket elite!"

"We didn't just beat him, we did it together!" Misty said happily

"That just shows that if we work together, we can achieve anything!" Brock also cheered.

(In the background, you hear a loud crash, followed by a YOW! OWW! MY HEAD! Followed by a whole lot of swearing.)

"Did 001 crash already?" Brock asked

Ash looked at the clock on his pokédex, "No, but judging by the time, faker's ropes have snapped already."

"Huh?" Brock and Misty blinked, they didn't know what he was talking about

(Location- Dark Forest Exit/Teal Ville Entrance)

"I can see Teal!" Ash said happily

"We're leaving the forest finally!" Misty also exclaimed happily

"Instead of gawking at the city, let's go!" Brock also said, and they ran as fast as they could into the city of Teal.

_What did you think of my fic's 'Boss Battle 1'? There'll be a lot more fights like this, and not all of them will be just between pokémon. That's all the free info I'm giving you for now._

(TO BE CONTINUED)


	5. Radical High Speed Pursuit!

Chapter 5- Radical High Speed Pursuit!

(Location- Teal Vile Pokémon Center)

"All of your pokémon will be ready in two hours" Nurse Joy said

"Two hours? That is kinda long…" said Ash, but Brock pushed him to the side

"Don't be so rude! Two hours are fine!" Brock said, then looked at Nurse Joy, "And speaking of time, when's your next break Nurse Joy?"

"Huh?" Nurse Joy blinked

"I was just thinking that we could go out to… OW!" Brock yelped as Misty dragged him away by his ear

"She's a busy woman and doesn't have that kind of time to waste!" Misty dragged him, to prevent him from embarrassing the group any further, "No one has that kind of time to waste, especially on you!" She let go of Brock's ear, dropping him to the ground. She looked left and right, where was Ash?

Misty looked back. There was a group of comfy chairs and couches near a TV set. This was where trainers would wait to have their pokémon healed. Ash was sitting on the couch watching something.

"What are you watching?" Misty walked over and asked him

"That" Ash pointed at the TV

"…The Dark Forest Region is now safe to pass through once again because Team Rocket elite agent 001 has finally been apprehended! According to reports, 001 had crashed through the skylight of the Teal Ville police station and…" The news reporter said. Misty sat down on the couch and watched the TV with Ash "Although he attempted to fight using his pokémon, it was simply too injured and tired to go on, and was easily subdued, forcing 001 to surrender. When being restrained, 001 was swearing revenge on a certain group of people and that he will get them no matter what, but it is not very likely to happen. Whoever the people he was swearing revenge on, they must be ones who have defeated him. 001 will be attending his trial in a month's. And now for the weather… What?! Ladies and gentlemen! This is an urgent report! There has been three attacks! One was the Teal Police training academy! According to our sources, the entire Growlithe K-9 squad had been defeated and Missingno gang trainers have ransacked the building and all HM's and TM's in the armoury were stolen. A single man, most likely a Super Fiend, has defeated the chief trainers. The second one was on the Teal Ville Museum. All the valuable ancient artefacts and pokémon fossils have been taken. The last was the Teal Ville pokémon lab, where a group of trainers invaded Swat Team style and penetrated the high security defences. The new experimental HM our city's scientists have been working on was stolen as well…"

"Did you hear that Ash?" Asked Misty

"No" Ash replied plainly

"Stupid! Why weren't you listening?!" She yelled out loud, and sweatdropped when she looked and saw everyone in the center was staring at her. She gritted her teeth and spoke, make that whispered to Ash.

"What?" Ash leaned closer, "I couldn't make out what you were saying"

She pinched Ash's ear and pulled him in "I was talking about the Missingno gang!" She let go and Ash rubbed his ear.

"What about it?" Ash spoke, rather loudly

"Not so loud!" Misty said

"(Fine then)" Ash leaned closer and whispered

"(You heard what he said, there're Missingno people here!)" She sighed, "(We're still not out of trouble!)"

"(You think so? They can't be THAT strong…)" Ash replied

"(Maybe not, but listen up. Back in Scarlet, I talked to a guy named Ebi…)" Misty said

"(Oh! So you've met him too?)" Ash interrupted her

"(Shut up! I'm only whispering because this it what he told me to do! He told me to tell you where to find him, seeing how he lives here! He's not very popular with that gang, you know, and he doesn't want tons of people hearing about where to find him!)" She spoke, "(Listen, Ebi said that after we exit the forest, head to the pokémon center to heal if we fought anything. He told me to look for him)"

"(What? Where does he want to meet us?)" Ash asked

"(I don't know! He left in the middle of the conversation to talk to you, and didn't come back because someone sucker punched him!)"

"(Hey! He used that ultra high voltage taser on me, and it's a wonder I'm still alive!)"

"(Well he was just showing you that he wasn't totally defenceless without a pokémon, unlike you!)"

"(I was never defenceless, and even without a pokémon I'm still strong! After all, I am a regular Super Smash Bros participant, and I happen to be a very good one!)"

Misty's expression changed, "(Super Smash Bros? You mean to tell me you actually participated in those tournaments?)"

"(Well, I entered Pikachu at least, and directed him through every battle! They're a lot of fun you know, and it's interesting to fight a different kind of battle!)"

"(Wait-wait-wait… tell me, when did you ever get the chance to go there? I've never seen you leave the group long enough to take part in any tournament, or you being mentioned in any TV, radio or paper, those tournament is even bigger and way more popular than the pokémon league!)"

Ash shrugged "(I guess I'm just that good. Pikachu did pretty well in that tournament (thanks to my coaching). Not to mention, my ultimate goal is to rise with Pikachu as the ultimate Smash Bros. Champ!)"

"…" Misty blinked, "(I thought your goal was to be a pokémon master)"

Ash shrugged "(And what to do after becoming the best trainer? I gotta have more than one thing to live for. Plus, entering Pikachu in those tournaments are good for experience, it helps me for pokémon battles, and I learn a lot. We came out pretty well!" Ash started to gloat, showing off was something he could do well, "You should've seen Pikachu in those matches… must have won over a hundred… with MY guidance of course. Not to mention we lasted through the 15 minute melee in my first try and eliminated eleven of the wire frames in 'Cruel Melee' scenario"

There was a flash of light and a snap. Ash and Misty both yelped and sat up, and saw Pikachu holding a Polaroid camera.

"Having a nice conversation?" Brock asked

"What was that all about?" Ash asked, and looked at Pikachu, "Pikachu! You're all better!"

"Nurse Joy treated him first, so he came out first" Brock explained, "What were you two talking about here?"

"Well… I was just telling Misty about my accomplishments in the Smash Bros. Tournaments…"

"Okay, I get the point Ash" Said Misty. Ash got up and walked to the counter to see how the rest of his pokémon were doing.

Brock leaned on the sofa, "Do you REALLY believe that he lasted that long in the cruel melee? I heard that those wire frame guys don't let people make it through easily, those things could easily pin a Machamp with one hand tied behind their back and bench press a Snorlax…"

"Well I believe him, he's not the type of person to lie about tournament, especially ones that big. I'm just surprised that he hadn't bragged about the final hit that defeated the cruel wire frame through a loudspeaker." Misty said

"But he did tell you" Brock gave Misty a thumb's up "Now he's started showing off to you, huh? I've noticed that you two have been getting really close lately…"

"Well, he was sitting only a few inches away…" Misty said, but realized something "Hey! You're not going on about this couples junk again?"

Brock shrugged "Hey, I'm only trying to help you out with your relationship, seeing how slow it's going…"

Misty whacked Brock over the head with a mallet, "Shaddup!" and walked off. Pikachu jumped onto the couch, holding the Polaroid picture that just developed. Brock looked at the picture, and laughed. "The thing that embarrasses them most is being called a couple" The picture of Ash and Misty when they were talking looked more like something else, seeing how they were both sitting on a couch, leaning close to each other and their faces were only an inch apart, and both of them blinked during the flash so it looked like their eyes were closed, "For every bash on the head I've received this week alone, I'm sending a dozen copies to every city we've been to, including Orange Islands, and a hundred copies of this picture will go to Pallet town and Cerulean city! Will they be in full colour?" Pikachu nodded, "Good, I want the full effect. That'll teach em' to mess with me, 'cause you can never smell what the Brock is cooking! GYAHAHAHHAA!" Brock laughed maniacally, ignoring all the faces of the people staring at him.

(Location- Teal Ville Town Square)

"Man! This city is so cool!" said Ash, staring at the fountain

"You're right about that" Misty leaned on a railing and looking at the water pokémon swimming in the waterways, "There's so much to see!"

"Yeah, heh-heh…" Brock spoke in a goofy tone, apparently he was staring at some girls passing by.

Ash snatched the Johto guide book from Brock's pockets "This town's got so many places to see! First there's the Teal Ville Pokémon museum… and is closed because of that last raid. Then there's also the Pokémon lab… which is also closed. I really wanted to see that lab! I heard they're always discovering new pokémon techniques and TM's! Well, then there's not much we can do, seeing how we're gonna be waiting for Tracey. The maximum I can do is start training."

"You know, a the best way to build up exp is to battle." Said Brock

"And Jessie & James are stronger now, so every time you beat them, you'll get more exp. Speaking of which, where are they? We've been in this town for eight hours, and they would have usually attacked us by now." Said Misty

"Oh… shoot!" Ash snapped his fingers angrily. "Right when I needed the exp!"

(Meanwhile… back at the Dark Forest Outpost)

"GRRR! Why-do-Team-Rocket-elites-have-to-always-CARRY THOSE STUPID METAL RINGS!" Jessie struggled to free herself from one of the three metal rings, "JAMES! Help me out of here!"

"Hey! I've got troubles of my own right now!" James tried to break free of his own, without much success. "Meowth! You don't have a ring! Help us!"

"The reason I don't have a ring is because I don't need one! I'd help you, but I can't move!" Meowth was still paralyzed and hurt and lying on the ground.

Jessie, James and Meowth all groaned. Getting out of here is gonna take a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG while.

(Location –Teal Ville Town Square)

"I'm bored… bored-bored-bored BOOOOOOORED…" Ash mumbled, sitting on a bench

Misty slapped him on the back of the head, "enough! I heard you the first fifty times!"

"Well I've got nothing to do! Sure I could be training, but how? The only experience I get is when battling, and there's no one to battle!"

"Can you at least find something to do?"

"Well, maybe…" Ash pulled out the metal ring and started examining it, "Team Rocket Elites use these things all the time, but I just don't know how! The only way I could get them on was because Jessie and James were unconscious and I managed to lock them on after a ton of tries! I kept this one because it JUST might come in handy sooner or later…"

As Ash was tinkering with the object, Misty got up and started looked around. "Brock! Hey! Where are you?" She called. A short while ago, Brock left to go following some girls. Misty was out of the town center right now. She scorned "I'd better go find him before he gets arrested for stalking…" She continued to look for that troublesome Brock…

(Meanwhile)

"Darn it! Where are those girls?!" Brock asked himself out loud. "Oh, shoot! I lost them! And that blonde back there was so cute…" He muttered angrily, and then sighed, "Oh well… better get back to the others…"

He walked back to the town center, where Ash was sitting on a bench, looking unusually focused. Ash was just trying to figure out how to work those metal rings.

"Hey Ash!" Brock walked over to him, "You actually kept those?"

"Yeah…" Ash replied, twisting, turning, trying to get it to open. "They work for the Rocket Elites, and if I can figure these things out, they'll work just as well for me too…"

**SCRRREEEECH!!!**

"WA!" Ash and Brock jumped at the sound of tires screeching.

"AAAAAAAAH!" A guy screamed. Ash and Brock both turned their heads and saw a van speeding and a guy sprinting as fast as he could to get away. He turned quickly to the right and dove into an alley out of the way. The van didn't try to follow him, but just kept speeding. Ash and Brock quickly ran to the guy to see if he was okay.

"Ungh… my head" He was kneeling and moaned. He picked up a pair of glasses that fell off when he jumped. He turned around and saw the two, "Ash! And… no eyes!"

"Ebi! When did you get here?!" Ash gasped

"No eyes?!" Brock exclaimed

"Listen Ash! No time to talk! Those guys are the Missingno gang members who attacked and stole the experimental HM from the pokémon lab! Hurry, you can't let them get away! That HM teaches a new and VERY destructive attack, and the machine can be used unlimited times!" Ebi yelled

"Ebi, um… they're in a speeding getaway van…" Ash replied

"I know, here! Take this thing! I just finished it and I'm not sure how well it works, but there's no time to test it out!" Ebi opened his bag and pulled out what looked like a white metal skateboard. There were two clips for the feet, but it had no wheels. Instead, on the sides near the back were what looked like two small jet boosters and where the wheels should have been, there were two shorter, but wider jets, with a small orange-yellow glow inside each booster. Ebi held it a foot over the ground and let go, but it didn't fall, it simply hung in midair "I just finished making this last night! Hurry! Use this and stop them!"

"Then let's go!" Without stopping to think of the possible dangers, Ash jumped on. The clips locked on Ash's feet and Pikachu quickly climbed up to Ash's shoulders…

"Hey-Ash! WAIT!" Brock tried to stop Ash, but too late. The jet boosters on the board flashed and Ash zoomed down the road at a very high speed, with Pikachu hanging on for his dear life.

"I just hope that jet-board will hold…" said Ebi

(Location- Teal Ville main streets)

"WAAAAAAAA!" Ash was screaming, flapping his arms wildly in a desperate attempt to stay balanced, while Pikachu had his eyes closed and was holding his breath. He leaned forwards, but the board started to tilt downwards. "WAWAWAWA…!" He leaned back, but it faced up and started flying higher…

**THUNK!**

"OW!!!" Ash exclaimed when his head hit a traffic light. "GRR…!" he growled, clutching his forehead with a tear in his eye. In front of him he saw another one coming… Pikachu covered his eyes and Ash screamed. He leaned to the left in a desperate attempt no to hit it. He missed, but went spinning in a barrel roll. "WAAAAAAAA!" Ash could not remember screaming so much in his life. Even being carried in the claws of an Aerodactyle was less scary than this. Ash straightened himself and the board started flying right side up. He clenched his fists and leaned forwards a little. "I'VE…GOT TO… KEEP… BALANCED!" Further ahead, he could see a white van speeding, cutting through traffic. Ash tried his best to stay upright, and this was no easy task. Ash clenched his fists and his arms stretched out backwards.

"PIKAAAA!" Pikachu pointed ahead and yelled. Ash looked…

"WA!" He tilted a bit to the right and tried to turn the jet board the same way he would do with a skateboard. When he did this, it turned to the right, barely missing a truck right in front of him. Pikachu yelled and pointed again. Ash did the same thing, but to the left and missed a jeep. Ash clenched his fists and leaned forwards a little, his arms stretched out backwards. PIKAAAA! CAR! Ash leaned back quickly and the board flew upwards, safely over it.

"Heh-Heh! I think I'm getting the hang of this!"

"Pikachu!"

Although a few things were different, riding the board was just like riding a skateboard. The stance was the same, the left and right turning was the same. Ash managed to keep the perfect balance and the board started flying straight at a 0o angle, not to mention it flew a whole lot faster.

"THIS IS AWSOME!" Ash dodged left and right, missing any obstacle that got in his way. He then stopped with the playing around and leaned back a little, flying higher and above the cars. He looked forwards, the van he was chasing was just up ahead.

"(BZZT!) ASH! (CRRRR…) CAN YOU… HEAR ME!?"

Ash looked left and right, "WHO SAID THAT?!"

"(CRRRR…) THIS IS EBI! (CRRR…) I'm speaking to you by the jet board's radio! ARE YOU ALL RIGHT?!"

"YEAH!" Ash yelled down, it was hard to speak, seeing how fast he was going, not to mention it was noisy. "THIS THING IS AWSOME! I'M GETTING THE HANG OF IT!!!"

"(CRRR…) GOOD! Listen Ash! The tracker indicated that the van is… (CRRRR…) WAY AHEAD OF YOU! You have to SPEED UP!"

Ash leaned forwards, the board flew down a bit, missing a bridge connecting two buildings, and then leaned backwards, flying up, "HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO DO THAT, EBI?!"

"(CRRR…) I know it's dangerous, but you can turn on and off the super speed like a light! You have to (CRRRRR…) align your feet in a certain position and the clips will turn and you'll speed up! To do this, you have to… CRRRRRRR"

"Ebi? EBI! WHAT DO I DO?!" Ash yelled, but got no response. Now the CRRR sound was gone. The radio was completely out. "I think he said to align my feet in a certain position… what is it?" he kept twisting his legs around, the clips didn't budge. He looked ahead, he wasn't getting any closer to the van. "OH COME ON!" He turned his feet into a certain position, and all of the sudden, he felt the clips turn, and the boosters on the back flashed and the world on the side went all blurry and all the noise seemed to fade away. "WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!" Ash screamed. Pikachu's teeth were clenched on Ash's jacket, hanging on for his dear life. He shot ahead REALLY, REALLY fast, zooming past all the cars. "HOW… DA HECK DO I SLOW THIS THING DOWN!??!" He moved his feet back to the original position, and it slowed down. "Whew…" Ash sighed, relieved. Now he wasn't flying at the speed of sound, he was only travelling at breakneck speed. After that last burst, this one seemed pretty slow, but anyways…

"Pikachu! There's the van!" Ash pointed to the left, he was flying alongside the van. He zeroed in closer to the van. "Okay… how exactly do we stop it?!"

"Pika! Pikachu!"

"No, Pikachu, we need to think of a smarter approach! And any electric attack would hurt me, and if I go down, we're both dead! We'll have to hit with physical attacks! Got a good long range one?!"

"PIKA! Pika, Pikachu Pika!"

"Okay! But if you want to do that, I'll have to get in front of them!"

"CHU Pikachu!"

"Fine then! I'll distract them!" Ash zoomed alongside the van. "HEY!" He slammed his fist against on the window, leaving a crack on the glass.

"Eh?!" One of the guys in the van yelled, "How the hell is that kid…?"

"Does that really matter!?" The driver yelled and turned to the right, in an attempt to ram the two.

"WA!" Ash moved to the right, barely missing it, "Pikachu! Are you ready yet?!"

"PIKA!"

"ALL RIGHT!" He yelled and zoomed to the front of the van. Pikachu climbed down and stood on the board, turned around and faced the van. "Pikachu! Swift attack!"

"PIKACHUUUU!" Pikachu fired hundreds of tiny little stars. They each hit the windshield, and it started cracking. More stars flew, the windshield hadn't been penetrated, but that wasn't the plan.

"GRRRR! I can barely see!" The driver complained. The window was white and full of cracks.

"Then let me take care of things!" A second guy yelled. He picked up a fire extinguisher and swung it, hitting the windshield hard and shattering it. Although it was difficult to drive without a windshield, it's better than driving blind.

"Perfect!" Ash yelled, "Pikachu! Use flash!" Ash turned his head and faced forwards, looking away from Pikachu.

"Pi-ka-CHU!" Pikachu sparked and flashed a REALLY bright light, blinding anyone who looked at it.

"GYAAA! MY EYES!" The driver yelled. In the madness, he didn't know what he was doing, his hands were turning the steering wheel left and right.

"All RIGHT!" Ash cheered, "It worked perfectly!"

"Pikachu!"

The van spun out of control. The tires screeched as it tried to stop. It started to turn, and then flipped and fell onto the side.

Ash leaned over slightly and the board started to slow down do a complete stop in midair. The power in the downward booster reduced, allowing Ash to neatly land straight on the ground.

"Well… at least the stopping part was easy to figure out!" Ash wiped some sweat off his forehead. "THAT WAS THE MOST AWSOME THING I HAVE EVER DONE IN MY WHOLE, ENTIRE, LIFE!!!!!" Suddenly, Ash heard the sound of police sirens in the background. "Ah… cavalry has arrived" Ash crossed his arms

(Five minutes later)

"You have the right to remain silent! Anything you say can and will…" Officer Jenny spoke as she placed handcuffs on the last of the five who were in the van.

"So Ash! I see you've mastered my Jet-board!" said Ebi

"Yeah! It was totally AWSOME!" Ash answered

"Well, it is more suitable for someone like you, and I've tried to ride it, but I simply just can't master it!" Ebi straightened his glasses, "Plus, if the Missingno got a hold of an HM that strong, it would have been the end of us. So as a reward, it's yours!"

"What?! REALLY!??!" Ash yelled, excited

"I'll let you keep it, but two things. It's still incomplete, so I'll have to take it in for a little while. And two, it needs a name. Could you think of one?"

Ash handed the board to Ebi, "Well… hmmm, let's see…" He looked at it, the design, the shape, the colour, "I've got the perfect name! I'm calling it, the _QuickSilver_!"

"Good choice Ash!" Said Ebi, "Where's 'no eyes' gone off to?"

"DON'T CALL ME THAT!" Brock yelled and punched Ebi on back of the head

"What were you doing back there?" Asked Ash

"I've noticed something was missing. Normally, after doing something idiotically dangerous like that, Misty'd be throwing a fit and hitting you for putting your life in danger, but I can't seem to find her" Answered Brock

Ebi's eyes widened upon hearing this, and he quickly turned to Ash "Ash? I know it was you guys who beat 001, but did you happen to see anything weird when in the dark Forest?"

"Definitely" He replied, "Some guy who looked, acted, dressed and sounded just like me was there. I fought him in a pokémon battle, and won. Then I fought him physically and beat him up. After he said he was gonna do all these bad things looking like me, I threw a rock in his face, tied him up, hung him upside down from a tree and took his money…"

"Ash!" Ebi snapped at him "What you just did wasn't a very smart thing to do! Listen! I knew another one who fought him that way. He beat up a faker, then nailed him into a barrel and kicked him off a bridge." Ash and Brock laughed, but Ebi did not see so amused. "That guy is a Super Fiend"

Ash stared at him, "That was a Super Fiend?" He shrugged, "Then either they're pretty weak, or I'm just the one who's TOO strong for them to beat…" he gloated

"Ash! There's a reason they use the word 'Fiend' in the name! When these guys want revenge, they really want revenge!" Ebi spoke, "No one knows faker's real name, but his code name is 'Doppelganger' because he can impersonate anyone. But that isn't why he's one of the fiends. He's the perfect spy and could imitate anyone he wanted. He could also mimic certain pokémon attacks. He's usually a very strong fighter, but that trainer who beat him, just like you definitely didn't give him the chance to fight seriously. If you left out the part where you hung him upside down and taking the money, you wouldn't be in such a big mess!" He sighed, "Let me explain. After doing all those things, that trainer soon found himself being caught in that faker's trap. Currently, he is resting in a mental institution, because he wasn't only attacked physically, he was attacked mentally"

"What are you saying?" Asked Ash

"I'm saying that he's going to do something VERY bad. Most likely, he'll use something or someone of great importance to you, against you." Ebi said

"You mean, like Pikachu?" Asked Ash

"Pikachu is a very good candidate, but it'll be hard seeing how strong he is and always next to you, it'll be hard to get him" Ebi spoke, "However, with the trainer, the faker used his girlfriend against him…" His eyes widened with shock, "Ash! Do you know where that girl is? What's her name, the one who's always following you?"

"Misty?" Ash spoke, "No, we're not a couple or anything… we're JUST friends…" he continued, turning a light shade of red

"Whatever! Do you know where she is?!"

"Actually…" said Ash, "No"

"Ash, this is bad. Hurry Ash! GO! You have to go and find her, before Doppelganger does first!" Ebi yelled

_Where HAS Misty gone? No one had seen her after she left to look for Brock. Is what Ebi said true? Has Doppelganger kidnapped her? Find out next time on PUA!_

(TO BE CONTINUED)


	6. The Search For Misty

Chapter 6- The Search for Misty

"MISTYYYYYYYYYY!" Ash zoomed around on the QuickSilver, ignoring everyone staring at him flying through the air

"Pika PIKAAAAA!" Pikachu also called

"(BEEPBEEPBEEP)" the transceiver phone on his head was beeping. Ash pushed the button. "(CRRRR…) ASH! This is Ebi! Have you seen any sign of her yet?!"

"No, I haven't!" He answered, and turned to Pikachu, who was riding on his shoulder, "Man, I'd never thought I'd say this, but I'm actually worried about her!"

"Ash! This is Brock! I heard what you just said! (CRRR…) SOOOO, looks like the truth is out! You actually DO CARE about her!"

"Brock?" Ash muttered

"Yeah?"

"SHUT UP!!!" Ash yelled through the phone. Way on the other side, Brock screamed and fell over. He sighed and then took a deep breath "MISTYYYYYY!" He yelled, "Come on! Where IS she?" He sighed. Two days ago, Misty disappeared, and no one has had any luck in finding her. Because the QuickSilver was fast, light and had a limitless power source, it was a very valuable item for searching for Misty. Ebi DID manage to take it from Ash long enough add those final touches, it was difficult because he did not want to stop searching and get off the thing.

"Come on you tomboy! Where are you?!" He growled, "At least give me a sign…!"

**SMACK!**

"WAK!!!" Ash yelped as a rock flew and hit him in the face. Pikachu looked ahead and sweatdropped, jumping off immediately. Ash then looked up "WAAA!"

**BAM!**

"Guwgh…" Ash groaned, he had just crashed into a telephone pole, (the pole cracked) The QuickSilver halted. From mid-air, Ash fell back, hanging upside-down from his feet.

Pikachu walked over to the rock. Attached to the rock was a string, and attached to the string was a piece of paper.

"Grrr! RAH!" Ash grunted, trying to straighten himself, but no such luck. Reaching up, he undid the clips at his feet…

**THUD!**

"OW!" Ash fell headfirst on the ground. "GRRRRR…" Ash growled as he slowly got back up, and turned around and looked at the crowd, with a particularly evil glare, making them all sweatdrop and back off nervously. (Background goes black and fiery, Ash's head is a million times bigger and he has fangs) "WHICH ONE OF YOU THREW THAT ROCK!?!?" He roared. Everybody screamed and ran away

"Pikachu!" Pikachu carried the letter in his mouth and ran to Ash.

"GRRRRR… huh?" Ash, who had been snarling like a wild beast stopped, and looked down at Pikachu, "What is it?" He saw the letter Pikachu was holding. Ash picked it up and looked at it.

**I told ya I Was Gonna GET YOU BACK! One way or ANOTHER! IF you want to see your GIRLFRIEND again, you'd better show up, or I'll KILL her! If you want to see her again, just look to your left and you'll see the ABANDONED THEATRE. I'M waiting. You better come ready to DIE!**

**Yours truly, Doppelganger**

Ash growled and crumpled the letter, tossing it to the side. He bent down and picked up the rock that hit his head. "Stupid faker! Now I'm really, REALLY going to hurt you!" He hurled the rock as hard as he could

(A fair distance away, Gary was walking down the street, minding his own business)

"Whew, I waited six whole months and paid a FORTUNE, but I FINALLY got that Master Ball I ordered" He stared at the purple ball, "I wonder, what pokémon should I use it on? Maybe if I find one of the legendary ones, like Raikou or…"

**BAM! **

"GAK!" A rock flew and hit him on the head. He fell over on his face, and the rare and not to mention VERY expensive Master Ball dropped out of his hands and rolled onto the street. He groaned and rubbed his aching head, and saw that his hand was empty, "AH!" He yelled as he saw the ball rolling down the sidewalk, "No! Come back!" He chased it, but the road started to slope downwards. "NOOOOO! STOOOOOOOP!!!!" He dove in an attempt to stop it, but crashed face flat to the ground as it continued to roll down the street. Gary got up, growling… his face was red with anger. "I swear… when I find whoever threw this rock…" he muttered and picked the rock up, "He'll suffer then SAME fate!" He crushed it with his bare hands.

(Back to Ash)

"Hey guys!" Ash sat on the QuickSilver, suspended in mid-air, "I found Misty!"

"That's great!" exclaimed Ebi

"Way to go Ash! True love never fails!" added Brock

"Shut up Brock! And I didn't mean I found her FOUND her! I just know where she is!" Said Ash, sitting two stories in mid-air on the QuickSilver "I'm right in front of some weird looking theatre! According to this note, Misty's in here!"

"(CRRR…) Note?" Asked Brock

"Did you say theatre?! Wait there Ash, we'll be right there! Whatever you do, don't go in! If I know anything (which I CERTAINLY do!) it's full of traps! If you're planning on going in, bring plenty firearms, and a lot of bullets!"

"Sorry! Don't have any! Unless you've installed retractable machine guns into QuickSilver!" Said Ash, "You DID install some, did you?" he asked, hopefully

"(CRRR…) Sorry, only a cooler full of soft drinks. I guess you can throw them! Just… stay out of the theatre! You don't want to get drawn into a fight, do you?"

"Of course I do!" Ash answered

"(CRRR…) Ugh… why do I even bother… Just listen up Ash! Whatever you do, DON'T GO IN! All right?!" Ebi took a deep breath and sighed, "We'll be there soon! Ebi out!"

"Sheesh… just how weak does that Ebi think I am?" Ash muttered, he stood up in the Quicksilver. The clips locked his feet into place. This DEFINITELY looked very unusual, because there was a crowd gathered up and staring at him. He continued stand around, but it was just getting irritating. Misty's gone, and he was supposed to just sit and wait for those to show up?! Ash got up, "Whatever! I don't need 'no eyes' and 'four eyes'! I'm stronger than those two combined! I'm going in!" Ash swooped down and dashed towards the doors, "I'M A COMIN' MISTY!!!!"

**WHAM!**

"Waaaaaa…" Ash lay on the ground, moaning. He should've looked before doing that dramatic entry, bursting through the doors thing. The entrance was locked and bolted from the outside. "Just how am I supposed to go save Misty if I can't even get through the front door!?" He kicked at it, "Come on! Stupid door! OPEN UP!" He turned around and saw the crowd staring at him, "WHADDAYOULOOKINGAT?!" He roared, they sweatdropped and backed off. Ash turned and looked at the bolted door and growled. He started kicking it, punching it, tackling it, scratching it and even biting it, anything to break it down, "GRRR! Do as I say door! I ORDER you to open!" At this point, Ash's state of mentality has degraded to such a degree, he was now repetitively slamming his head to the door, trying to break it

"Pika, Pikachu!" Pikachu pulled at Ash's pant leg, getting his attention. Pikachu then pointed at the pokéballs attached to Ash's belt.

"Oh yeah! I'm a pokémon trainer! I guess I kinda forgot about that… eh-heh-heh…" He pulled out his pokédex and pressed the white button, "Which pokémon should I use… AHAH!" Ash pressed the button. One of the pokéballs on his belt disappeared in a flash and was replaced with another. Ash turned his cap and threw a pokéball, "Tauros! Take-down!"

The wild bull reared and then charged at the door, smashing it to pieces. "Oh yeah!" He looked behind him; people were still staring at him. Ash sighed, "Will you stop acting like I'm crazy?!"

"Who's acting?" he heard someone from the crowd call out.

"(Sigh) Come on! There's a Super Fiend in there! He's holding my friend prisoner and I have to go in and rescue her!" He yelled out

"Wait… you mean to tell us… there's a Super Fiend in there?" Someone said

"Well of course! Doppelganger right inside! What do you think the fuss is all about?"

"AAAAAH!!!!!" Everyone screamed and ran away

"(Cough) Man…" Ash squinted and coughed due to the cloud of dust. He waved his hat to blow away the dust. "Is everyone THAT afraid of them? There's no way they could be THAT bad… ugh… whatever" Ash looked at the streets again, to see if Brock and Ebi arrived yet, they were nowhere in sight. However… he did spot something from the corner of his eye, "Hello… what's this?" he said, looking at the purple pokéball (which Gary had 'conveniently' dropped earlier) rolling down the sidewalk, "OH SWEET!" he exclaimed, grabbing the Master Ball, "Awesome! Things are finally going my way!" he said happily. Looking around, Ebi and Brock still weren't here, and Ash had enough of waiting. He wasn't gonna just stand around anymore. He took off the QuickSilver and slung it across his back, called back Tauros and walked through the entrance, with Pikachu following him.

(Location- Teal Ville 'Phantom' theatre)

Ash kept quiet as he snuck through the building. It was dark and creepy, but his duty as a future pokémon master meant that he mustn't be afraid and back down from a challenge. This was the pledge all trainers hoping to become the master sworn. Ash sighed, and this is why so many of them are dead, and the new pledge he sworn included this, and more.

"(Pikachu)" He whispered, "(Could you pick up Misty's scent?)"

"(chu…)" Pikachu sniffed, trying to find ANY sign of her, but no such luck.

This place reminded Ash of the Dark Forest, but at least that place wasn't this eerie. None of the halls were lit, so it was nearly impossible to see. Using the QuickSilver's headlights would change things, but it would also give them away.

"(Pikachu, you've got good ears. Listen too)" whispered Ash. Pikachu focused, trying not to breathe even. He tried to listen to anything that would lead them to Misty. All of the sudden, his ears raised. He heard something. "(What is it Pikachu?)" Asked Ash, but he heard it too… the sound of faint, indistinct talking, "(I hear it too! From there!)" Said Ash. He ran as fast as he could deeper into the darkness. He kicked a door open and ran in. He sprinted down the hallway and entered an open room. He looked, he was in an oval room. There was chandelier hanging from the ceiling, on one side were two doors and a balcony right above it. On the other side were two wide flights of stairs that lead up to both sides of the balcony, and there were two more doors. In the darkness, he could see her. There she was! "Misty!" She was sitting on a wooden chair. Her arms and legs were tied up two metal rings.

"Ash!" She called his name, "It's you!"

Ash ran up to her, "I'm so glad you're okay!" He started pulling and trying to undo the rings. After about a minute, he freed her.

"Thank you so much Ash!" Misty exclaimed, hugging him

"Uh… heh-heh…" Ash turned a shade of red and rubbed the back of his head, and then he straightened up "Misty! We've got to get out of here before that faker comes!" Misty didn't move, and just gazed at Ash, "Misty? Why are you…" He went even redder. Misty moved her hand up and brushed him across the face gently with her hands, Ash couldn't say anything. He was in shock. Misty leaned her face closer to his… and her gentle smile turned into a wicked grin.

**SMACK!**

Misty punched Ash on the face, hard. Ash fell onto the floor and looked up at her, shocked. She stepped into the shadows, out of sight, and stepped out as someone else. "WHAT THE…?" The person smiled. He wore a cloak and a hood, covering most of his body and half of the face. The half of the face that showed was that of a teenager. There was no mistake about it; this was Doppelganger's true form.

"Doppelganger! You dirty bastard!" Ash yelled "What did you do to Misty?!"

"What do you mean?" Doppelganger spoke, in a hushed voice

"You know what I'm talking about! You took her, and I want to know where she is right now! Either you tell me right now…" Ash yelled, and took up a fighting stance, "Or I'll beat it outta ya!"

Doppelganger just laughed at him, "Back in the forest, you saw nothing. But over here, in my territory and with my REAL strength and skills…" A fist flew out from the cloak and smacked Ash hard. Ash's head spun, dazed, but he quickly shook it off and punched at him, but he hit nothing but cloak.

"WHAT?!" Ash yelled as the entire cloak drifted and hung from his arm. There was no one inside!

Doppelganger jumped from behind and kicked Ash on the back, knocking him over onto his face, landing on the cloak. Doppelganger's hand shot out, grabbed the cloak and yanked it hard. Ash spun a few inches into the air and hit the ground again.

"PIKACHUUUUU!" Pikachu launched a powerful thunder attack…

"HMM!" Doppelganger covered himself with his cloak… the lighting had no effect!

"WA?!"

"PIKA?!"

"Too bad for you, my cloak's insulated to resist the elements!" Doppelganger said, darting forwards and kicking Pikachu hard. Pikachu went flying into the wall, and dropped to the floor, dazed.

"PIKACHU! NO!" Ash yelled, he tried to hit Doppelganger again, but Doppelganger blocked it with his arm. He kept striking at Ash, his cloak twirling and waving through the air. "GAH!" Ash was hit again and again. With the cloak flying around in his face, not only did it distract Ash, but it covered the body and arms, so Ash couldn't see where the attacks where coming from, or the body which he was trying to hit. Doppelganger grabbed Ash by the hair and pulled his head down, and then slammed him in the face with his knee. "AAAH!" Ash screamed, but Doppelganger didn't stop, smashing on the back of the head with his elbow. "Ungh…" Ash felt these two hits, and couldn't take another one. Ash got hurt and collapsed…

Doppelganger laughed, and stepped on Ash's head. Ash closed his eyes, expecting the finishing blow, but nothing came. "If I finished you off now, then that wouldn't be any fun!" He laughed, "This is a theatre after all, and I don't want to disappoint my audience (myself) with a sudden ending!" He covered himself with the cloak and ran into the darkness.

"DAMN!" Ash punched the floor, "He got away!" He growled, "You'd better run faker! If I find you, you are going to PAY for that, and Misty too!"

Ash got up, picked up the two metal rings and ran through the hallways, not bothering to be quiet. As he ran, he was throwing, bashing and kicking all of the furniture and different objects in his way.

"PIKA PI!" Pikachu yelled angrily at him, Ash stopped running and calmed down.

"Yeah, you're right Pikachu" He sighed, "Trashing the place isn't a good idea, unless I'm doing it to him"

Both he and Pikachu continued on. Then they reached the end of the hall, and there was another door. Ash silently opened it, and Pikachu looked in to see if it was safe. It was fine, and they both entered. This place just got creepier and creepier. They found themselves in the room full of costumes. Hanging from the walls, there were some Shakespearian ones, Vikings, and a whole lot of other artsy ones. Then there were the creepy ones, clown costumes, and the crying black and white clown mask with the tear painted on. Not to mention more creepy masks hanging from the walls everywhere. Just looking at them made Ash shiver. Suddenly, they heard a slamming sound, making both of them jump. They looked back. The door had shut itself… Ash reached and grabbed the knob, trying to turn it, with no success. They were locked in.

"Dammit!" Ash swore. Now they were locked in a scary room full of scary costumes of scary monsters! He felt like there was someone, or something staring at him. He could feel his heart beating, and almost hear breathing. There was a rustle, Ash turned and looked, but there was nothing. "(Why the heck did I come here?)"

"(Pika, Pikachu, chu Pika)" Pikachu spoke

"(Yeah, I know)" Ash squatted "(_Misty_)" he sighed, "(The things I do for friends… but even I have my limits, and for anyone else I would've hesitated to come in here, but why not for her?)"

"(Pika! Pika Pikachu!)"

"(No, I do NOT LIKE her!)" He snapped at Pikachu, but then calmed down, "(No, that's not what I meant. I mean, I like her, as a FRIEND! That's all!)" he said hastily

Pikachu rolled his eyes and sighed and spoke "(Chu, Pikachu Pika)"

"(Whaddaya mean tell her? Tell her what?)" Ash asked, his face went red, but it was dark so no one could see.

"(Pikachu Pika)"

"(No, I don't know what you mean…)" Said Ash, still red, "(I don't know what is all this talk about… you know… me and… her)" Ash sighed, "(I just can't see us like that)" He turned his head, "(_Although sometimes, I really wish I could JUST see what it would be… us like that…_)" he though to himself, "(_What IS it that I'm feeling?!)" _He breathed deeply. "(_Do I really feel that way about her? And how would I know how she feels about me?_)"He quickly raised his head. "(_No, way, it can't be …_)" He thought sadly to himself. "(_Now I don't even know what I want anymore._)"

His train of thoughts was interrupted by something. He felt like something was nudging him in his mind, that he all of the sudden knew where to find _her…_

"Misty!" He exclaimed, and got up. Running through the hallways, forgetting his fear, of the darkness, of the danger… all that mattered was he find her.

"Pika!" Pikachu got up and followed him. He didn't know what Ash heard, because even he didn't hear anything, while all of the sudden Ash could sense where she is…

Ash dashed through the hall, he could see a door, slightly open. Light was coming through it. This had to be it. Ash didn't waste any time with the stealth, he kicked it right open and ran through.

"Misty!" He yelled out and stopped running. Looking around, he saw he was standing in the middle of a stage. There were rows upon rows of seats, but it was completely deserted. There were spotlights shining down on the stage, and some of them were moving slowly. He squinted as one of them shone into his face. It moved away, and continued to move. Then he could see a dark figure. The spotlight moved across it, and he could see who it was. It was Misty. Ropes were tied around her arms, and she was hanging from a rope hanging from the ceiling. Her eyes were closed and she wasn't moving. He immediately felt pain, sadness, and anger…

"Took ya long enough to get here" Someone said in a nasty, mocking tone. Out of the shadows stepped in a figure. Doppelganger started laughing at him, and Ash growled, "You should see your face!" Doppelganger pointed at him, and then looked up at Misty hanging from the high ceiling "Oh, don't worry. She's alive. I'm not the type of guy to harm a defenceless girl." He turned back to Ash, "It's you I want"

Ash glared at him, "I'm sorry, but I'm not your type" he said sarcastically

"Oh! So you find this funny, eh?" Doppelganger spoke in an annoyed tone, "Well how about this?" He pulled out a knife.

Ash took a fighting stance, "Fighting with weapons now? Well go ahead! You got yours…" his hand reached for a pokéball, "And I got mine!"

Under the hood, Doppelganger smiled, "Oh, that's not what I had in mind" He spun around and pulled away a curtain, revealing many ropes. He slashed one with the knife, and from the ceiling, a large sandbag fell down.

"WAA!" Ash quickly dove out of the way, and the bag missed him, barely.

Doppelganger smiled and slashed another rope, causing another one to fall, and another. Ash kept yelling and jumping out of the way of each one. "Usually, this many sandbags don't hang from the ceiling. But in MY theatre, I find it to add some nice effects, wouldn't you say?"

"YAAAAA!" Ash yelled and charged at Doppelganger on the other side of the stage. Doppelganger spun and hacked another rope, one after the other.

**(CRASH)** One fell downwards, but Ash moved to the left as he continued to sprint towards Doppelganger

**(CRASH)** One fell towards Ash, but he jumped diagonally to the right, missing it as he continued to dash. Ash was almost there, just a few more metres…

Doppelganger shook his head and issued Ash to stop. He had the knife to another rope. He pointed up to Misty hanging from the ceiling. Ash stopped, and he was just a few feet away from him, and his fist was only a few inches, but the knife was touching the rope.

"Go ahead, hit me! Then your lady love is gonna come crashing down!" Doppelganger laughed.

Ash growled. Pikachu was on his shoulder and sparking. They didn't know if Doppelganger would really do such a thing, but they weren't gonna risk Misty's life just to find out. "Whatever happened to you not being the type of guy to harm a defenceless girl?"

Doppelganger shrugged. "There's a fine line between harming and sacrificing, especially if it has to do with MY personal safety. Now Romeo, if you don't want her splattered all over the floor, I suggest you back off"

Ash spat "You're afraid to fight me! That's why you're hiding behind her back!"

"No, I'm not afraid" Doppelganger sneered, "You know I could easily beat you. If you try to fight me this time, it'll be the same as back there. I have no interest in simply breaking your body… I'm going to keep on tormenting you till you lose your mind…!"

Up in the air, hanging from the ceiling, Misty's eyes opened up. Looking left and right, she groaned miserably. She just remembered the situation she was in. She then heard voices. She looked down, and saw the person who kidnapped her, and… "Ash?" She said weakly

Down on the ground, Ash growled, but did as he was told. Backed off, and dropped to his knees, "Please, she didn't do anything to you! She's got nothing to do with this! Just let her go!" He pleaded, "I'm the one you want, so just don't hurt her!"

Up in the air, Misty had heard what he just said, "Ash? He's risking himself, for me?" She felt her heart beating…

"Hmm…" Doppelganger muttered, then turned to Ash "Quit whining and stand up" Ash got up. "Now, I could just slice this rope and finish her off right away, or I could just let her go and enjoy revenge on you! I pick…" He turned to the left and kicked a switch. The floor underneath Ash opened up and both he and Pikachu fell into the deep, dark hole. "Both!" He sliced another rope, causing one to fall from the ceiling and into the pit. There was a large crash, "I know that won't finish you off, but it'll make sure you don't go anywhere until I get everything I need! And don't worry about your ladylove here! You'll be seeing her soon!" He continued to laugh as the trap door closed.

"Ash…!" Misty said in shock and fainted.

_Things look very bad. How are our heroes going to escape from this? And WHERE ARE Brock and Ebi???? Find out next time on Pokémon: Ultimate Adventures! If you have any comments or suggestions, I'll gladly listen to any you might have. _

(TO BE CONTINUED)


	7. The Maze of Mirrors

Chapter 7- The Maze of Mirrors

(Location-Under the Phantom Theatre)

"(cough)" Ash coughed as the sandbag hit the ground and broke, sending sand flying everywhere, "Pikachu! Where are you?"

"Pika!" Pikachu replied. He was totally unharmed.

"All right!" Ash pulled the QuickSilver and jumped on, "Hop on Pikachu!" Pikachu climbed on to Ash's shoulder. Ash looked up, where the trapdoor was. "Here… I… GO!" He zoomed upwards, ready to crash through the door…

**CRASH!**

"Waaaaaa… This wasn't the kind of crashing I had in mind" Ash groaned as he lay on the floor. The door was made of several layers of thick plywood, and it probably had a layer of metal in there too. It was definitely too strong to be broken by Ash's head. Although it did have the reverse effect, "Now I see what they mean when they tell us to wear a safety helm…"

"Pika…" Pikachu groaned

**BEEPBEEPBEEP!**

Ash's hand reached into his bag and he pressed the button on the transceiver headphone "Hello?"

"(CRRR…) ASH! This is Ebi!" Ebi spoke

"And Brock!" Said Brock

"What the hell are you doing going against a super fiend!?" Yelled Ebi

"What I'm doing…" Ash said sharply, placing the transceiver phone on his head, "Is saving Misty!"

"How are you gonna do that?!" Ebi yelled "(CRR…) Didn't I already tell you about the last trainer who did that?"

"Yes, and I'm not him!" Ash replied

"(CRRR…) You're not as strong as him either! That guy's an Indigo top 3 ranked trainer! All of his pokémon are over level 50, and Doppelganger beat him!

"Maybe because guy is just has skills…" Yelled Ash, running to the end of the room to a door, "But isn't very tough!" He kicked the door hard and it broke open.

"(CRRR…) ASH! I could understand why you're rushing in to things, but do you think that MAYBE you could have waited for us to come in with you?" Asked Brock

Ash ran, Pikachu following him at his heels, "Do you think that you could MAYBE come in here right now?!" He yelled

"No can do! (CRRRR…)" Said Ebi, "After you broke down the door and ran in, some sort of barrier appeared, blocking our way!"

"Do you have anything that'll break through it?" Ash asked

"(CRRR…) Hey! I'm just a genius! Not a fortune teller!" said Ebi, "Even if I brought the tools to break through the invisible wall, there's nothing I have that won't end up destroying the whole building in the process, you included! (CRRR…) Sorry Ash, we'll have to do what we can from here!

"Well that's just great!" Ash yelled and reached the end of the hallways. "JEEZ! How big IS this building?!"

"Huge, really, really huge! (CRRR)" Said Ebi

"Well that doesn't make things easier!" Ash saw another door. He tried to open it, but it was locked. He backed up a few steps… and ran towards it. Ash smashed his way through, and looked around. It was a huge room, and completely empty. On the other side, he could see a closed door, and a high-rise, with another door.

"Ebi! I'm in this room…" Said Ash

"That's nice, now be more specific! There's lots of rooms!"

"No, it's a really huge room and completely empty"

"Huge and completely empty? (CRRR…) You're definitely in the underground mall" Said Ebi, "This place has been closed for years, and it had years to be cleared and everything. Not to mention, it had years to be changed into an H.Q. Fit for a fiend! If I know Doppelganger, he's not the type who demands company, so at least there won't be any Missingno henchmen around! That means you should be careful! If there's no henchmen around, that means there would be no need for their safety, and this place can be loaded with traps!"

As Ash began to walk, there was a bright flash. "WAAA!"

"PIKAAA!"

Both Ash and Pikachu fell over, their hearts beating really fast. That just freaked him out. Ash stared at the gigantic room, and pressed the button on the transceiver. "Ebi… this is weird! It looks like a hedge maze in here, but instead of a maze of hedges, it's a maze of mirrors!"

"(CRRR…) Really… a maze of mirrors?" said Brock

"I just said that!!" Ash shouted, "Ugh! Why do I even bother asking you guys for help! I'll just fly over it with QuickSilver!" Ash said, taking it out and hopping on. He dashed upwards, above the maze…

**BAM!**

Ash fell to the floor

"Uh… Ash?" Said Ebi Are you alright?

"$(#&! I just hit the freaking ceiling! What do you think?! LIKE HELL I'M ALRIGHT!" was Ash's reply, both Ebi and Brock sweatdropped, "Urgh! Dammit!" Ash growled, rubbing his head, "It's so dark in here I couldn't even see the ceiling! I HATE THIS PLACE! The second I see that Super Fiend, I swear! I'm gonna kill him!" Ash ran forwards into the maze. After a few minutes, he started to calm down, but the maze… it wasn't that bad, just a little unnerving. The mirrors made it confusing and it was hard to tell which was a path and which was a wall. Pikachu walked at Ash's heels, and he didn't like the looks of this place. There was something VERY wrong with the maze. Then it hit him, the mirrors! "OW!" Ash yelled, they had just walked into a corner.

"Pika!" Pikachu yelled and pointed at the mirrors.

"What is it Pikachu?" He looked at the mirrors, "Hey!" He could see his own reflection, in all of them, but he looked to the left and right, but Pikachu's reflection wasn't in either of them! "What's with this place?" He looked into the mirror in front of him, and felt his heart beating really fast and really hard. The mirror in front of him didn't have the same confused look he had. It was staring at him, sneering. He looked to the right, they were all smiling wicked smiles. Ash backed off, this was too weird! Before Ash could make a run for it, the mirror Ash on the left shoulders, and the one in front punched him a few times in the face and in the stomach. Pikachu's cheeks sparked and he was about to help, but the mirror Ash on the right grabbed him. Pikachu shocked it hard, but no effect. The on holding Ash let go and Ash fell to his knees. The one in front kicked him in the face and grinned, and the mirror Ash to the right threw Pikachu to the ground. They all laughed and retreated into the mirrors, out of sight. Ash looked up, the mirror to the left, right, and front of him showed reflections of the maze, but not of him or Pikachu.

"EBI!" Ash yelled through the transceiver phone, "Something really wrong is going on!" Ash started explaining about the mirror images attacking him

Whoa… freaky! Said Brock

"What do you think is going on?" Asked Ash

"I have no idea! Said Ebi, Wait… CRRR… Did you say there was fighting?"

"Yeah"

"This is weird! We didn't hear anything through the transceivers!"

"How could that be?!" Asked Ash nervously. He had the feeling that he was alone on this one.

"It could be Doppelganger's powers…" Said Ebi, "Hold on… I'll look more into it. In the meantime, Brock'll try and keep you company"

Ash continued. A good way to get through a maze would be to put the hand on one wall and follow it all the way. That way, you'll eventually reach an exit, but Ash wanted to pass as little of these mirrors as possible. He was also afraid just to touch them. The walking then brought him up to a fork, turning two ways like a 'T'. He looked left and right, and decided to choose the one to the right. After several minutes of walking, he found another fork just like that one, he turned left, and later on, another fork.

"Talk about déjà vu Ebi!" Said Ash, "I keep passing by these forks in the maze. They all look exactly the same, like I've been going in circles, but I keep taking a different turn!"

"That does sound strange Ash, (CRRRR…)" Said Brock, "Maybe if you mark one, then you'll see for sure"

Ash looked at the right rather uneasily. The whole place was made of mirrors, and each of them had a reflection. He hesitated, and pulled out a marker. He walked over to the one on the right and drew a great big 'X' on the mirror (it was on his reflection's face) Ash looked at it, there was no response, and he sighed in relief. He turned around, but heard growling. He looked up, the one he just marked stepped out of its mirror and had his fists clenched. "WA!" Ash yelled as Mirror Ash #4 punched at him. Ash pulled out the QuickSilver and quickly shielded his face.

"YOW!" Mirror Ash #4 punched the hard metal board and hurt his hand. He held on to his wrist, it looked like the bone had cracked. He looked up… "WA!" Pikachu jumped from Ash's shoulders, mouth wide open and cheeks sparking. Pikachu grabbed on to Mirror Ash 4's face and was biting, clawing and shocking him. Ash backed off a little, and his back touched the mirror behind him.

"Uh oh…" Ash sweatdropped, and turned around quickly, swinging the QuickSilver downwards, and bashing Mirror Ash #5's head. Dazed, the real Ash kicked him in the stomach, and #5 fell into his mirror, on the floor and not moving. Ash swung the board and hit that mirror hard. It cracked and shattered, the pieces fell onto the floor, he had just eliminated Mirror Ash #5. Ash smiled to himself, he knew how to destroy these things! He turned around. Mirror Ash #4 was running in circles screaming at Pikachu who was clinging on the face and still biting and scratching. Pikachu jumped off and Ash whacked #4 on the head with his board and then kicked him on the back, making him fall face flat on the floor into his mirror. #4 got up and looked at Ash. He gasped as Ash swung the board, smashing that mirror to pieces.

"ASH!" Brock yelled, "What's going on? I heard some crashing! Are you okay? Did you mark the mirrors like Ebi said?"

"Sort of" Ash slung the QuickSilver on his back and continued. He walked further on and the path turned several times. In a few minutes, he came to another fork. "What the?!" Ash said, a mirror on each side was shattered, their pieces on the floor. "I've marked the mirrors like you said, and I'm back here again! I'm going around in circles!"

"ASH!" Ebi finally came back, "I've checked around. Doppelganger is famous for possesses unique abilities, creating illusions, that's how he's able to disguise himself, and maybe that's what he's doing now, that's why we can't hear anything! Be careful Ash, even if they're just illusions, that won't stop you from feeling pain!" Ebi continued, "As for the mirror trap… clear your mind… and don't let it fool you!"

"All right…" Ash did as he was told… closing his eyes and walking forward. Just when he though he was going to bump into a wall, he was surprised, opening his eyes, he was outside of the mirror maze! "YES!" He cheered, "Ebi! It worked!" he exclaimed… but there was no response, "Ebi? BROCK!? Where are you!?" there was no signal… "What's going on!?" he growled… as he looked around him, the surroundings have changed. He was surrounded by a circle of mirrors, there was no way out. "Hmm…" He touched one of them… even when he tried to concentrate, it didn't disappear, they were real. "Hmm?" He suddenly turned around… standing there in the middle of the circle of mirrors, a figure in a flowing cloak, Doppelganger!

"I'm impressed you've made it through the maze, Ash!" He clapped, "The last trainer who challenged me went insane at the 'T' trap!"

"That was an extremely lame maze! All I had to do to kill those mirror images was send them back to the mirrors where they came from and SMASH them!"

"Maybe fighting your reflections with your strength and skills isn't that much of a challenge, but could you stand a chance against MY reflection with MY strength and skills?" Asked Doppelganger

"HUH?!" Ash gasped, as suddenly, Doppelganger split into seven! Pikachu's cheeks sparked and was ready to attack, but Doppelganger only laughed.

"Come and get it, if you dare…" Doppelganger took a fighting stance

"Whatever!" He yelled. He turned around and around; the place was full of them. "I'll find the real one, and SMASH YOU!" Ash's hands shot down to his pokébelt, and he quickly grabbed one of the pokéballs, "TAUROS! I CHOOSE YOU!" he shouted, releasing the wild bull pokémon. Hopping onto his back, he shouted "TAKE DOWN!" Tauros charged and smashed through them. The Doppelganger images smashed to pieces, like glass. "OH YEAH!" he cheered…

"DON'T CELEBRATE YET!"

"HUH?!" Ash exclaimed as the real Doppelganger leapt up out of nowhere and grabbed him by the shoulders, pulling him off Tauros' back and tossing him down "AGH!" Ash screamed when he hit the ground.

"You don't know the extent of my abilities!" Doppelganger crossed his arms, and the smashed mirror images of him came back together, and stood ready to fight.

"Why you…" Ash growled, looking at one in front of him… "YOU'RE THE REAL ONE!" Ash pounced forwards…

"HM!" Doppelganger snapped his fingers…

"AGH!" Ash screamed, when he felt a fist slam into his stomach. Before he could fall, a pair of arms grabbed him and held him up. "GRRR…" he growled when his vision returned, and saw two copies holding him up, while another one was punching him! "GRRR" Ash growled. The one in front had to be real… "PIKACHU! ATTACK!" he screamed

"PIKACHUUUU!!!" Pikachu leapt into the air, electricity shot down…

"HMM!" another copy jumped in front of the blast

**CRASH!**

"WA?!" Ash and Pikachu exclaimed when the copy shattered to pieces, but came back together! The copy quickly leapt up towards Pikachu and slammed him down with his fist!

"Heh, don't think I'll go down so easily. The copies'll protect me with their lives!" Doppelganger laughed, punching Ash across the face. "This is it for you…" he grabbed Ash by the neck and held up his fist… "Huh?" he stopped when he saw something strange, "Why are you smiling?"

"Heh… you should have paid more attention…" Ash smirked, looking behind Doppelganger, "ATTACK!"

"WHAT?!" Doppelganger turned around, expecting to see a pokémon charging at him… but there was nothing, "Huh?!"

"YAAAH!!!!" Ash screamed, struggling hard and kicking his legs upwards, striking Doppelganger in the chest and knocking him down, "TAUROS! STOMP!"

"AH?!" Doppelganger looked up in horror, when he saw Tauros's raised hoofs coming down at him! "AAAAHHH!!!!"

**CRACK!**

"WHAT?!" Ash exclaimed when Tauros smashed down on him, and Doppelganger's body shattered to pieces! "THAT WAS A COPY?!"

"Heh-heh…" a voice laughed behind Ash, "I never said that was the real one"

"GRR… RHA!" Ash spun around and slammed him across the face with his fist, but that one also shattered to pieces. He wasn't real either!

"DON'T THINK I'M DOWN YET!" the one that was smashed by Tauros just now had come together and tackled Ash from behind

"WAGH!" Ash screamed as he fell, and more and more of them kept piling up on him

"Heh-heh-heh…" Doppelganger laughed, the REAL one, staring at the pile of copies that were pinning Ash to the ground. "What a joke. You couldn't even find the real one, much less lay a finger on me!" he smirked, "Any last words?"

"Go to hell!" Ash spat, struggling beneath the pile

"Hm… Doppelganger frowned, "That does it…" he growled, "I'm done playing around" he turned around and walked away. "Kill him"

"GRRR…" Ash growled, his handed reached his belt… "everybody… GO!!!!"

**CRASH!!!**

"HUH?!" Doppelganger turned around, just to see all the copies shatter to pieces!

"Hm…" Ash stood there, with a cold glare on his face. Standing around him were all of his pokémon. "Time for round two. You bastard"

"Grrrr…" Doppelganger growled, "WHY YOU!" he shouted as his copies came back together, "ATTACK!" he howled, as the copies as they charged towards Ash…

"HMM!" Ash swung his arm, smashing one of their heads with his fist. "ATTACK!"

"Bay-BAAYYY!"

"CYNDA!"

"TOTO!!"

"PIKACHUUUU!"

"URGH…!" Doppelganger exclaimed when Ash's pokémon attacked fiercely, destroying all his copies before they came close! "WHY YOU… I'LL JUST MAKE MORE!!" Doppelganger roared. Immediately, the number of copies doubled and they all attacked, but it made no difference…

"RHAAA!!!!" Ash gave a fierce battle cry, as he and his pokémon tore viciously through the copies, smashing them to pieces with no effort! Even though they were greatly outnumbered and the copies kept coming back, Ash and his pokémon showed no sign of tiring, and continued their assault!

"GRRR… AH!" Doppelganger screamed when Ash suddenly leapt from the skirmish, with Tododile in his hands

"TODODILE! CRUNCH!" Ash shouted, and threw Totodile…

"HMMM!" Doppelganger quickly conjured two more copies… they stood protectively in front of him, guarding him with their lives…

**SNAP!**

"AH…" Doppelganger gasped, when one copy's arms were snapped off by Totodile's jaw! If he hadn't made that copy… it would've been him!

"HAAA!!!" Ash roared…

**SMASH!!!!**

"AAAAAHHHH!!!" Doppelganger screamed, when Ash's fist smashed right through the second copy, and right into his face!

"Hmph…" Ash growled as Doppelganger flew back and hit the ground. "Take that"

"Ungh… ngh…" Doppelganger groaned weakly, struggling to stand up…

"CYNDAQUIIIILLL!!!!" Cyndaquil cried as it blasted its flames, enveloping the copies. However, this time, they didn't break to pieces, they melted like glass.

"So that's how you kill them" said Ash, seeing that the melted copies didn't come back… "Very well then… CYNDAQUIL! FLAME WHEEL!!!!"

"NO!!!" Doppelganger screamed, as Cyndaquil's attack ripped through the masses of copies, and melted under the intense heat of the flames.

"You lost, Doppelganger" Ash glared down at him

"N-no, NO!" Doppelganger screamed and stood up. "A-ah!" he trembled and stepped back, as Ash and his pokémon slowly approached him, "I'M ONE OF THE SUPER FIENDS! I'M ONE OF THE STRONGEST IN THE WORLD! I CAN'T BE BEATEN BY THE LIKES OF YOU!!!" he cried, "THIS ISN'T OVER! I STILL HAVE ONE LAST WEAPON!" he said desperately, raising his hand…

"AH!" Ash gasped at what he saw… "MISTY!" he screamed. She was unconscious, tied up and hanging from an opening in the ceiling, "Y-you…! AH!" he exclaimed when Doppelganger darted forwards and punched him in the face

"HAHAHAHA!!!" Doppelganger laughed as Ash stumbled back, "YEAAAAH!" he spun his body and kicked at him. Ash struggled to block, but almost fell over from the impact, "WHAT'S THE MATTER?! YOU'RE GETTING SLOWER ALL OF THE SUDDEN!!!"

"AGH!!" Ash screamed as he fell back, but Doppelganger grabbed him by the front of the shirt, not letting him fall.

"This is it Ash Ketchum…" he held up his fist, "Now… I'M REALLY GOING TO KILL YOU!"

_The battle is far from over, as Doppelganger reveals his trump card, Misty! Now fighting harder than ever, he won't hesitate to kill. Will Ash be able to stop him? Find out next time on PUA!_

_(To be continued)_


	8. FOR MISTY!

Chapter 8- FOR MISTY!

(Location- Heart of Phantom Theatre Mirror Maze)

"This is it Ash Ketchum…" Doppelganger growled, holding Ash up by the front of the shirt in one hand, his fist in the other, "Now… I'M REALLY GOING TO KILL YOU!"

**SMACK!!!**

"AAAGH!!!!" Ash screamed and flew back, hitting the ground. "Ungh…"

"Pika…" Pikachu growled, "PIKACHU!" he shouted, and all the pokémon charged towards the super fiend…

"HMMM! TOO SLOW!" Doppelganger spun, evading the attacks, "WHOA!" he jumped out of the way, nearly missing Tauros, "WHY YOU!" quickly he made several copies of himself as Tauros came charging at him again. "HMM!" he flipped into the air and onto Tauros's back. Quickly, he pulled off his cape and threw it over Tauros's head!

"PIKA?!" Pikachu exclaimed as Tauros lost control and ran blindly, wihle Doppelganger was controlling the direction! "CHU!!!" he screamed and dove to the side, before Tauros smashed him, however, Bayleef and Cydaquil weren't so lucky.

"HAHAHA!!!" Doppelganger laughed, quickly pulling his cape off Tauro's head and jumping off. Though Tauros could see now, it was too late…

**CRASH!!!**

"MEEEUUUH!!!" Tauros's voice cried out as he crashed headfirst into a wall.

"Three pokémon down…" Doppelganger smirked.

"Pika…" Pikachu growled, looking at Ash, who was still down. "PIKAAA…" sparks started crackling at his cheeks, while as he stood protectively in front of his trainer

"HM!" Doppelganger raised his cape as lightening flew at him. The cape deflected the bolt, and he ran forwards, "HA!" he shouted, kicking Pikachu and sending him flying. "And now the finisher!" he turned around and looked at Ash, who was still down, "RHAAA!!!" he jumped up, ready to drop down on him with his elbow…

"HOOOT!!!"

"AGH!" Doppelganger exclaimed as Noctowl shot out of nowhere, slamming him in the back with quick attack, and sending him landing a few feet away from Ash. "GRRR!! STUPID BIRD!" Quickly removing his cape, he threw it over the bird pokémon and snatched him out of the air, "RHAAA!" he roared as he swung it through the air, hitting the ground

"Ungh… AH!" Ash exclaimed, when he saw what was happening, "NO!" he shouted as he jumped to his feet and ran forwards…

"You want him back?! TAKE HIM!" Doppelganger swung his cape with Noctowl inside, slamming Ash back. "Hmph!" he let go, dropping the injured Noctowl

"No!" Ash picked up Noctowl and cradled him in his arms, "You… how could you do this to pokémon? You…"

"Hmph, don't blame me. You're the one that sent them to fight!" said Doppelganger

"What?!" Ash exclaimed

"If anything, you're even worse than me!" Doppelganger pointed at him, "You're a coward, too scared to fight! That's why you send these animals to fight. While you claim to be fighting, in reality, the whole time is spent…" he charged at Ash, "HIDING BEHIND THEIR BACKS!!!"

**SMACK!**

"AGH!" Ash screamed as Doppelganger hit him. "Ungh… agh…" he groaned

"You pokémon trainers are all alike!" Doppelganger shouted, "Look at you! The moment you see the girl, you crumbled! You have no idea what it means to be a real fighter! That's why you're weak!"

"Hmmm…" Ash stood there. Doppelganger's words cut deep into him. Was what he said true? Was he really that weak? "No…" Ash spoke, looking up at Misty. When he saw her, he felt something… a new energy, the desire to protect her… he was forgetting his fear, and he felt like he was getting stronger…

"If that's all you got to say, then I'll finish you off right now!" Doppelganger shouted, towards Ash and swinging his fist…

"HM…" Ash's hand shot up, and caught Doppelganger's punch

"What?!" Doppelganger shouted, "NGH!" he exclaimed, when Ash tightened his grip, and began crushing his fist! "ARGH!" he shouted, pulling his fist out of Ash's grip. "Grrr…" he growled, rubbing his hand, which was in pain. "Hm… you're stronger than I thought…" he said, his lips curved into a smile, "THE REAL BATTLE STARTS NOW!" Doppelganger quickly charged forwards, removing his cape and held it in one hand as he attacked. Doppelganger was fighting serious now. He gave Ash a powerful kick in the stomach, which threw Ash back several metres. As Ash got up Doppelganger attacked again, causing Ash to fall again. As Ash groaned and got up, he saw Doppelganger coming at him, and Ash attacked. Doppelganger was very agile and countered any attack Ash threw at him. Though it didn't seem likely, that cape was a powerful weapon. The way Doppelganger was fighting, he kept on twirling around and slapping that cape into Ash's eyes, making it extremely difficult for him to fight.

It didn't take very long. Doppelganger had already gained the upper hand. Ash couldn't even touch him, while Doppelganger was showering him with all these hits. One by one, Ash was weakening… "HA!" Doppelganger kicked Ash in the stomach. As Ash bent over, Doppelganger threw the cape around Ash's leg and pulled, making Ash trip and fall, hitting his head.

"Agh…" Ash didn't lie to himself. This Super Fiend was beating him, and this one's supposed to be the weakest one! This isn't possible! The guy's a human, yet he defeated all of Ash's pokémon, right down to the trainer himself! How could this happen?! Ash wiped some of the blood off of his mouth. He couldn't give up, he just couldn't! As Doppelganger charged forwards, Ash got up and STRUCK at him with all his strength. Doppelganger simply caught the punch with his cape and pulled, causing Ash to trip forwards. Before Ash fell, Doppelganger kicked him in the stomach with his knee, before he spun around and elbowed him on the back of the neck, "WAGH!" Ash exclaimed as he fell to the ground. "agh…" he coughed

"What's the matter Ketchum?" Doppelganger started laughing, "getting tired?" he sneered as he kicked Ash on the side.

Ash really didn't look so good. He was bleeding, he was bruised, he was wheezing, he was very weak. Could this be the end? "(_NO!_)" Ash thought to himself, there had to be something he could do… wait… he got it! Ash smirked and reached into his pocket and pulled out a glass ball. "Hah!" Ash rolled it over to the pokémon which was nearest to him, Tauros.

"What?!" Doppelganger exclaimed, as he saw Tauros getting back up!

"Heh… don't ever underestimate Pokémon trainers. Especially not me…" Ash spoke. Ever since he started fighting the missingno gang and taking their money and things after beating them, he's, he's been able to get all sorts of expensive equipment and items. Like that revive he used on Tauros! "And by the way… that revive I used just now wasn't the only one. I bought it in a six-pack!" he held up five more and threw them to each of his pokémon, bringing them back up. Though they weren't fully healed by the item, they certainly had enough HP to fight this battle! "ATTACK!"

"BAYYYYYY BAYYY!" Bayleef fired tons of leaves. Doppelganger quickly swung the cape at them, knocking them out of the air. The damage was done however, because a few rips were left in the cape.

"Okay! Now to take you down with the special attack I invented, HYDROTHUNDER!" Ash yelled

"To-to-DIIIILE!" Totodile fired a huge jet of water

"Pi-ka-CHUUUUU!" Pikachu electrified it.

Both elements magnified each other's strength, and it flew at an incredible speed, too fast for Doppelganger to sidestep, but quick enough to put his protective cape, "AAAAAUUUGH!" he felt the full blow of the pokémon's attack. Though the cape should've protected him form the electricity, the electrified water seeped through the holes and shocked him!

"HAAAA!!!" Ash ran forwards and attacked. Doppelganger tried to pull off his cape, but he wasn't fast enough

**SMACK!**

"ACK!" Doppelganger fell on his back. "GRRR…" he growled. He should've been able to counter that, but those but those rips from the razor leaf… they opened his insulated cape, and the water's soaked into it. With all that insulation, most of the water was absorbed and his cape was weighing him down! Doppelganger growled and tossed his heavy cape to the side "Using your pokémon against me again, huh? I should've known!"

"Hmm?" Ash wondered what he was talking about

"You know you just can't win! That's why you're making your pokémon fight your battle for you!" he said, trying to provoke Ash into fighting him directly

Ash sighed "So you're another one of those stereotypical guys. Just because WE'RE not the ones doing damage automatically means we're weaklings… Even someone like YOU should realise the mistake in that one"

"What mistake?" Doppelganger spat, "If you think you're so great, come on and fight me! Just you and me, and no help from THOSE things!" He pointed at Ash's pokémon

"Well, okay" Ash shrugged, "As a matter of fact, that's exactly what I was gonna do! I just needed the pokémon to get rid of YOUR weapon! Now that you and I are both fighting unarmed, we're on even ground!" Ash smirked and started cracking his knuckles

Immediately Doppelganger charged forwards and attacked, but his fighting style wasn't nearly as strong without the cape. Being a pokémon trainer, Ash had learned how to tell where the enemy's attack was coming from and how to react quickly, and without that cape to distract him, he was able to do this. This was a repeat of their fight in the Dark Forest, because Doppelganger was at a disadvantage without his precious cape.

"HA!!!" Ash slammed him in the face, and Doppelganger fell over on his back. With a lot of difficulty he got up. Ash elbowed him on the mouth, breaking a tooth. "You did the damage, and it's time you got what's coming to you!" Ash yelled. He grabbed Doppelganger by the hair and pulled down the head, kicking the face with his knee. "You shouldn't have challenged me in the first place!" Doppelganger was bent over, on his knees, and Ash slammed his face to the floor

"AGH!" Doppelganger screamed, and Ash kicked him again

"What reason do you have for doing all of this?!" He yelled, "This is for dropping me down that pit into this stupid maze!" He hit him, "This is for all the pain you've caused me and my friends!" Doppelganger struggled to get up, but Ash kicked him, "AND THIS IS FOR TAKING HER AWAY FROM ME!"

**SMACK!**

"URGH… Ugh…" Doppelganger was on his knees, gasping, "Ngh… Awwww… how NICE!" Doppelganger punched Ash right on the neck. Ash coughed and choked, and this left a very wide opening… "RHAAA!!!"

"AGH!" Ash took a hard blow to the head and nearly tripped. He gritted his teeth and straightened himself. Misty's life was in danger, and he couldn't let himself be beaten by this loser! "HA!" Ash swung his fist and struck him hard.

"Bad move KID!" Doppelganger spun and kicked the back of Ash's legs, tripping him. "You've messed with me for the last time! I should kill you where you stand!" He put one foot on Ash's chest, and stomped it hard. Ash wheezed from this. "You should've known when to give up! Then you would have made it out alive! This'll be a lesson to those who challenge the Missingno gang, and the SUPER FIENDS!" He raised his foot and stomped down, towards Ash's neck, but Ash caught it.

"GRRR! You're right…" Ash spoke, his eyes were shining with defiance, "Let this be a lesson… to those who are afraid, of cowards like you! LET EVERYONE WHO'S EVER SUFFERED BECAUSE OF YOU SEE WHAT KIND OF WEAKLING YOU REALLY ARE!" He twisted Doppelganger's leg with both hands, tripping him. "Your missingno gang is nothing but cowards! And the only reason I'm fighting you right now is because I helped someone, and defended them from those cowards!" said Ash, remembering how he defended Ebi from those two punks. "If facing a weakling like you is the price for helping a person in need, then so be it!" Ash shouted, slamming him down, "You think you're so strong just because you walk around picking on weaker guys! Now that you face someone tough enough, you can't handle it!"

"Agh…" Doppelganger coughed, spitting blood out of his mouth. "No…" he growled, forgetting his pain. His hatred and anger surpassed his fear, and he refused to give up. "You just don't get it, do you?!" He punched and hit Ash on the chest again and again, then a jab to the face. Ash was on his knees, and dazed. He could barely sit up, much less stand. "You're a weak trainer, and I'm and invincible Super Fiend!" he picked him up by the front of the shirt…

"GRRRAAAA!" Ash roared…

**SMASH!!!**

"AAAAAGHH!!!!!" Doppelganger screamed, when Ash slammed his head into his face!

"Hmm…" Ash growled, his forehead was bleeding a little. "No…" he spoke, "You're the one who doesn't get it!" he growled "AAAAAAG!!!!" Ash screamed as he flew back several metres. Doppelganger was getting fiercer by the second. "Agh…" Ash's arms were shaking. He struggled to get up, but fell down to the ground

"PIKA! PIKACHU!" Pikachu ran up to Ash

"Ungh…" Ash stood there, trembling…

"GRR… damn you… WHY WON'T YOU STAY DOWN?!" Doppelganger screamed, hitting Ash again and again, "Why?! Why won't you stop getting up?!" he shouted, but no matter what he did, Ash rose to his feet. "You shouldn't even be able to stand! You should be on the ground, writhing in pain! How come you're not injured?!"

"I am… but I swore never to run, never give up. Especially with the life of my friend on the line…" Ash looked up at Misty, "With wounds this light… if I fail her right now…" he looked at him coldly, "THEN I'LL NEVER FORGIVE MYSELF!!!"

"AGH!!!!" Doppelganger fell back under the impact of Ash's fist

"Everything you said about pokémon trainers… you don't know anything!" Ash shouted, "Even if I'M not the one in the battlefield delivering the blows during a pokémon battle, I still fight with my heart and guide my pokémon to victory! That's what being a trainer's all about!" Ash kicked him in the stomach

"Don't tell me what to think… I'm loyal to the Super Fiends, but I'm even MORE loyal to the Missingno, and you have no more right to disrespect them than to ME!" Doppelganger lashed out, but Ash wasn't hurt and could easily move and dodge, "The Leader of the Missingno, he's the one who trained me as a fighter! He's the one who made me strong! He's my BROTHER! He's the reason I was accepted as a Super Fiend! I OWE EVERYTHING TO HIM!"

"SO!?" Ash grabbed his wrist with both hands "RHAAA!!!" Ash heaved his body, flipping Doppelganger over his head and slamming him to the ground. The sound of bones snapping could be heard coming from Doppelganger's wrist.

"AAAAGHH!!!" Doppelganger screamed, when Ash broke his wrist!

"I learned that move from Misty when we brawled for that rice ball!" Ash glared down at him, "Whoever you are, whoever you claim to be, you don't know you anything about pokémon trainers! You don't know ANYTHING about strength! My strength comes from my heart! Remember this!" he shouted, grabbing Doppelganger and slamming him, "The reason I could keep going on is because I'm fighting for a REAL purpose… that purpose to protect those I care for, to fight for someone other than myself, that purpose which gives me strength, far beyond yours!" Ash yelled, "I'm fighting for someone right now! Do you know who is?!" He raised his fist and pulled his arm back. His shoulder hunched, and his fist shot forwards… "MISTY!!!!"

**SMASH!!!!**

Doppelganger took the full impact of Ash's strongest punch. Doppelganger was sent flying through the air, crashing into the wall, and down to the ground.

From up at the ceiling, Misty's face went blushed deep red and her heart skipped a beat; she had just heard all those things he had just said! _Ash… he is fighting… for ME?_

Doppelganger moaned in pain. He was on his knees, trying to use his shaking arm to get up. "Ngh… no…" he slowly got up, standing on his trembling legs, "I… can't lose… I… I… ugh…" His legs gave away, and he collapsed.

"Hmm…" Ash sighed. "Doppelganger… has been defeated!" He wiped some sweat off his forehead as his pokémon cheered

Up in the air, Misty closed her eyes and smiled. She was exhausted and had no energy. She had been prisoner for days and wasn't able to rest, with so much worrying about not being so see her loved ones again, sleep was impossible. She took one good look at Ash. His face, full of determination and energy, his smile was so heart-warming, just seeing him made her relax. She closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep, knowing that she wouldn't have to worry about the pokémon, seeing how they were in good hands now. And even though there wasn't any shining armour, Ash was better than any knight, and he had come to her rescue…

"Owwww…" Ash rubbed the hand he had used to punch. He felt like he might have cracked a knuckle or something, but it didn't matter. It was worth it. Ash looked around him and saw the maze was fading away.

**BEEPBEEPBEEP**

Ash pressed the button on the transceiver, "Yes?"

"(BZZZT!) ASH! This is Brock! (CRRR… )"What's going on? Is it over? Did you win?"

"Yeah, I won all right!" Ash looked at Doppelganger, "But the maze just disappeared!"

"That is because you defeated him! (CRRR…)" Said Ebi "Doppelganger's specialty is illusions, and now that he's unconscious, they're all gone! Right now, the police have arrived, but we can't get in. It's still locked up! Doppelganger probably has the keys on him. Hurry up, we're all waiting!"

Ash smiled. He called his pokémon into pokéballs, and walked over to the QuickSilver, which Pikachu was already standing on. It hovered a few inches off the ground. Ash hopped on and flew up to Misty. With her eyes closed and that little smile on her face, Ash couldn't help but smile himself. "(_Man, she looks so pretty_…)" he thought to himself, then Ash shook his head and slapped his face, "(_No! What am I thinking!? I must've taken more blows to the head than I though…_)" He untied the rope around her arms. She started to drop, but Ash caught her and held on to her tightly. Using that rope, he tied it to the QuickSilver and the other end around Doppelganger's legs, so he would hang upside down as the board was in the air. Out of Doppelganger's pockets, he picked up a set of remotes and keys. He clicked one of them, and the trapdoor where he fell in from the auditorium opened up. There were also remotes to disable the invisible wall at the doorway. Upstairs, Misty's pokémon were being held, and he had to go there first. After collecting the pokéballs and a Togepi, who Pikachu was just relieved to see that he was okay, Ash flew through the air towards the exit, with Misty safe in his arms.

(Location- Ebi's place)

"Way to go Ash! You've defeated a Super Fiend!" Brock congratulated him, "You can bet you're gonna make front page!"

"No, he's not" Said Ebi, removing the metal coverings of the QuickSilver and screwing on much stronger metal alloy plates for the shell. "Doppelganger's arrest will be announced, but the identity of the one who beat him has to be a secret. Otherwise, you're going to have a ton of Missingno henchmen and another Super fiend trying to hunt you down"

"I'm fine with that. I don't care whether I become world famous for beating him, I'm just glad that…" He looked at Misty who was sleeping on a bed, "She's all right"

Ebi spoke "That's some great attitude you have about this. Perfect for a master" he held up the finished board, "The thicker armor on this board will use some room and add a bit of weight, so we're gonna forget about installing retractable machine guns. The supply of pop has also been removed. You wanted to have ammunition?" He pulled out a few oddly coloured pokéballs; "Pester balls release a foul gas that practically burns a pokémon's nose up worse than a gloom ever could. If you're a human, it'll stink, but not as bad as it would to a pokémon. The smell goes away in a few minutes, and the supply is unlimited. If you're planning to use something on humans, you can just throw them. Because they're carrying a lot of compressed gas, they're heavy and hurt when they get hit with them. Anyways, with that new alloy on it, the QuickSilver's practically unbreakable. You could use it as a weapon for bludgeoning enemies, or shield from any sort attack. Seeing how you don't have to worry about it breaking anymore, you could use it to train your pokémon for battle."

"All right! Thanks a lot Ebi" Ash accepted the board. It felt a little bit heavier, but only a little bit" "And two, do you think that you could later on add a switch or command that'll make it transform into a cool sword or huge gun?"

"I think that's just a little CLICHÉ, even for you" said Brock

"You're a pokémon trainer, and swords and knives don't suit you" Said Ebi, "You know Ness? (From Earthbound?) He did well with just a baseball bat, defeated the mighty Giygas with it. If a baseball bat was enough to get him into a Smash Bros tournament, then an indestructible jet board/shield/weapon is good enough. You have to slide your arm into the two clips you use for your feet, and it's automatically a shield and you can hit guys with it." Ash put it on his arm. It was similar to a gauntlet. The board covered up to his elbow and past his hand, so it could be used to block and hit.

"Awesome! Thanks Ebi!" Ash cheered, trying it on and practicing a few punches.

"Hmmm…" Ebi sighed, staring at Ash. Really amazing that kid was… overcoming his limits and defeating a super fiend… he was really strong and skilled, but that wasn't all. There was something else about him… something special. "Maybe…" Ebi looked at Ash, and then turned around. "Maybe he's the one, destined for the sphere…"

(Location- Green forest Exit, Teal Ville South Entrance)

"Whew, so the rumours are true?" A teenager asked. He was wearing a white Samurai Gi and two swords. One of them is a katana, slung across his back, the other is a bokuto (wooden katana) at his side. His hair is long and spiky, and tied into a ponytail at the back.

"Yep, and it's a good thing too. I'd have really hated to come all this way for a wild goose chase…" Someone slammed his two gigantic fists together. The guy was MASSIVE and has spiky hair yellow hair. He has a yellow tank top and army camouflage pants, and he looks almost identical to Lt. Surge, the gym leader of Vermilion city, but bigger and more muscles.

A few metres away, there was a small explosion as a hole burst open. Someone climbed out ground exploded into a hole and someone stepped out "Hey, cool your jets!" He spoke up. On his head was a yellow hardhat and he was wearing silver gauntlets that each had two spikes on the fists

"Yeah Jolt, you should really learn to _chill out…_" A smooth voice spoke. A cold wind blew, making them all shiver. Under the moonlight, there was a very spiky silhouette. He stepped forwards, the guy looked like he just stepped out of a freezer or something. His skin was pale, with an ice-blue colour, and he was wearing a ninja outfit, encrusted with frost all over.

"Hey! Quit it! It's cold ENOUGH here without you breathing all over us!" The big guy slapped him on the back of the head and a few strands of hair that hung down like icicles snapped right off. The big buy shuddered, "Ugh… it always gives me the creeps when that happens!"

"Speaking of which…" someone spoke in a grim, hushed voice. "HAH!" A tree fell over. The trunk was sliced clean. Dressed completely in black, a very pale man held a large scythe. He easily sliced the tree with one swipe.

"Why are you so late, Goth?" Asked the one with the swords

"I ran into some trouble…" He spoke, "Those Kaiser Cultists sure are annoying… I had to cut down quite a few of them before they gave up"

"Yeah, them Kaisers just don't know when to shut up!" A voice called out. Standing there was another man. He was rather young and thin, dressed in green. He held up a Japanese style fan, that covered his face "By the way, you really didn't have to cut down that tree" He pulled it down, showing his face

"Yeah Goth, he loves trees. At least show him a little respect." They all looked up. Floating in the air, dressed in a silver uniform and had a glowing aura surrounding him, another Super Fiend spoke.

"So Bonsai and Twin Dreamer have finally arrived. Now just ONE more and we'll all be here" Said the big guy

"One more? What about Doppelganger? Don't you mean two?" Asked Bonsai (The one with the fans)

"Ah, he's out of the group. I never wanted him in our group anyways. The only reason I accepted him because daddy thinks boy is strong enough to be one of us. Frankly I liked his brother Jackknife more. He was cool and had what it took to be a fiend, unlike Doppelganger. Too bad didn't join, his loss" The one with swords spoke

"Yeah, well I'll miss Doppelganger though. I really, REALLY enjoyed picking on that geek…" Cleft (the one with the hardhat and spiked gauntlets)

"Ahem" Bonsai cleared his throat, "Anybody know where water-boy is?"

Goth sat on the stump of the tree he sliced earlier. "I don't know why we even let him in… The guy's not that great. Actually, he's kind of pathetic really"

A large rock hit Goth in the back of the head. They looked back and saw another person. He was younger than any of the other fiends, and only about as old as Ash, dressed in a dark blue T-shirt with a black vest and a silver chain around his neck. "What was that about me being pathetic? Why don't you try saying that again to my face?" Goth closed his eyes and sighed. Turning around and picking up his scythe, he faced looked at the kid with the Trident

**CLANG!**

Their weapons clashed against each other's. Goth had attacked first, but the guy with the trident deflected it easily. Between the prongs on the trident, he caught the wooden handle of the scythe and twisted it hard. The Scythe spun out of Goth's hands, and the teenager with the Trident grabbed it. He may be the youngest among them, but definitely not weak. He was FAR stronger than Doppelganger, as were all of them. "There's a very good reason why I rank second. Maybe if I were to turn you into shish kabob, it'll teach you to respect me…"

**TWAK!**

"That's enough!" The one with the swords hit the trident guy with a wooden sword

"So what's this all about, boss?" G.I. Jolt asked, "More orders from big Missingno?"

"Don't call me boss. I prefer just Sky Render" He said, "No, this has nothing to do with the Missingno gang. If it did, then I wouldn't have bothered calling everyone here." Sky Render looked at Cleft, AntiArctic (the one with all the frost and ice), Bonsai and G.I. Jolt (Big guy) "This has nothing to do with that gang" Sky Render said, "Someone was strong enough to beat Doppelganger. It's nice to know there are still some strong people in this world of wimps. This poor soul fought Doppelganger because he's enemies with the Missingno gang, but unfortunately for him, they have connections with us! Sure, Doppelganger may be a wimp and a loser, but he was still a Super Fiend, and therefore that man who defeated him is our enemy!" He said

"I know who it is that beat him" Bonsai out a picture and handed it to Sky Render, but it was too dark to see

"The guy is a threat. He isn't that smart, seeing how he let his picture go worldwide, and even Doppelganger could see he had a weakness, but that wasn't a very smart move because he could take down anyone for her… He's strong, very strong, but we're stronger" He pointed at the lower ranking Fiends, "So? Since all of us are stronger than Doppelganger, which one of us wants to take him down?"

"I volunteer!" Aquamarine stepped forwards "I didn't get to fight any battles for ages, and I'm out of shape! Not to mention I'm in the mood for some fun!"

"Alright then Aquamarine! Just don't lose" Sky Render crossed his arms

"That's fine, because he ISN'T gonna beat me!" Aquamarine clapped his hands together, "Prepare yourself what's your face, you're all washed up because you're about to tangle with me AQUAMARINE!"

_Doppelganger MAY have been defeated, but he is nothing. Ash, Misty, Brock and Ebi have no idea of what is coming their way. Will they stand a chance against the Warrior of the Ocean, Aquamarine? Find out next time on PUA!_

_(TO BE CONTINUED)_


	9. Team Rocket! The Second Wave!

Chapter 9- Team Rocket! The second wave!

(Location- Teal Ville North Exit/Foot of Ice Blue Mountain)

"PIKA!" Pikachu fired a strong bolt of lightning at his target bounding through the tree branches, but missed. "Pika, pika Pikachu!" He called to the other pokémon. Bayleef aimed his leaf, Totodile opened his mouth and Cyndaquil fired up his flame. The opponent came into sight and they all fired their attacks, but missed. Noctowl swooped in attempt to peck it, but missed. It was simply too fast. The pokémon were all sweating and panting, they simply could not hit him! Out of the trees, their opponent came out.

"Come on guys! What if I was a big bad Super Fiend? If you can't hit me, you'd be fried by now!" Ash saw that they weren't very enthusiastic about attacking their 'respected master', "Looks like you need some motivation. Well, heads up, 'cus it's coming this way!" He bent over and pulled out a pester ball. All of the pokémon gasped at the ball hit the ground, releasing the foul-smelling purple gas

All the pokémon ran as fast as they can out of the gas, covering their noses and coughing. As soon as it cleared, they stepped out, all looking REAL mad.

"All right!" Ash flew and spun around in the air, dodging every attack aimed at him. He stood up in front of a tree and stuck out his tongue. "What's the matter? Can't hit me? Here comes another one!" He threw a pester ball downwards and laughed. He then moved, which was convenient because the second he moved, a large blast of electrified water came and hit the tree, exploding it to bits. Ash flew quickly, and behind him, another tree was hit with a barrage of razor leaves. The tree trunk fell to the ground in pieces as thin and clean cut as paper. Ash zoomed past three more trees, and the next attacks barely missed him. A tornado ripped a bunch of them out off the ground and into the air. They were burned to ashes when a gigantic blast of fire burned them all. (All of this happened in one and a half seconds)

Ash threw five more pester balls at them as he jumped off the board and stood up on a boulder, placing his hands on his hips, looking very superior and laughing. "No matter who it is, nobody can beat me! That's why I'M THE MASTER! Which by the way… you can start calling me that anytime now… NYAHAHAHAAA!!!!"

"Ash!" A voice called him. Ash's face went a bit red, he didn't know why, but lately, he's been feeling slightly uneasy being around Misty, and not once did he not blush when hearing her voice. He turned to her. "What do you think you're doing?"

"I'm training my pokémon! Can't you see?" said Ash

"When Ebi gave you the pester balls, they weren't meant to be used like THAT!"

"Why not?"

"Because pester balls are like tear gas to pokémon, and if you keep using those things on them, along with them trying to attack you, you'll lose their respect!"

"Lose their respect? Not likely…" Said Ash, noticing Misty looking nervously at the pokémon, sweatdrop, and quickly dive behind the boulder. "Huh?" He looked at the pokémon. "WAAA!" He was hosed in the face with a powerful jet of high-pressured water, "GWAAAA!!!!" He was then hit by a blast of fire, "WAWAWAWA!!!!" a huge tornado tossed him into the air, and a barrage of razor leaves flew into the tornado with him… The tornado was completely drowned out when a gigantic bolt of lightning came down, followed by a gigantic explosion.

**BOOM!!!!**

"Ah!" Misty was on the ground, he hands was on the ground, her hands covering the top of her head as the rubble fell from the sky. She nervously opened her eyes and blinked. The boulder was gone, and in its place was a large, smoking crater, and in that crater, was a charred, smoking body that was apparently Ash's. "Whoa…" Misty sweatdropped, looking at Ash. "Um… Ash? Are you okay?" Misty slowly approached him, but there was no response, "Are you alive?" she poked him with a stick

"Waaaaaa…" Moaned Ash, "Urgh… I think that's enough training for today… now call an ambulance… huh? Misty?" Ash looked up at Misty. She wasn't moving, but she was looking around nervously. "What is it… WAAA!!!" Ash sprung to his feet, forgetting his injuries, and looked around him. In every direction, there were Team Rocket agents! They were completely surrounded!

"You!" A Team Rocket agent pointed at Ash, "Are you Ash Ketchum?"

"Grrr…" Ash growled, "I dunno, what if I am?"

"We're under orders to take you in, for interfering with Team Rocket!" Said the grunt

"So that's it. Team Rocket still hasn't given up, and now you've finally found me, huh?" Ash smirked, "Took you long enough" he started laughing

"And just what is so funny?!"

"You guys have NO idea what you've gotten yourself into. You just came at the worst possible time. My pokémon are in a REALLY bad mood, while I'm just ITCHIN' for a fight!" Ash crossed his arms, "ALL RIGHT THEN! EVERYBODY! GO!!!"

(Location- Team Rocket HQ Branch)

"All right! You all know why I called you here today!" Giovanni spoke

"Um, actually… no sir" Said Team Rocket Elite 002

"We haven't been informed" 003 Said, nervously

"It is about 001! He was one of my star agents, and now he is in maximum security prison!" Giovanni punched down on his desk, making the 00 agents jump. "Not only was he an Elite, he was the strongest, and he was defeated by CHILDREN!" He yelled, and then calmed down, "What I am calling for today is to find a decent replacement for him"

Agent 009, 'Domino' cleared her throat.

"You, my next agent 001? I think not…" Giovanni glared at her, "NONE of you are worthy of that position, unless you can show me that you're skilled enough, I might consider putting your names and the call-back list…" He picked up several pieces of paper, "Here is the assignment" One had Ash's picture, the second had Misty's, the third had Brock's and the last was Ebi's, "One of my men faxed me these pictures" He pushed Ash's, Misty's and Brock's pictures forwards, "These three are the ones who defeated 001. I didn't quite catch the names, but these particular ones would be easy to spot. The boy with a pikachu and a pokémon league cap, a girl with bright orange hair, and a teenager with no eyes…" He pushed Ebi's picture forward, "And their newest member… be careful, none of them are pushovers." He handed them the pictures, "In other news, I will be selecting a team rocket agent to an elite. Depending on how good he is, he'll be given a 00 number ranging from one to nine. When a new member joins, the highest one of you," He looked at 002, "May be squeezed into 001. But if he is good enough, he will become our next star elite agent 001. Not very likely, but within three week's time, I will decide. In other news, I have my entire ground combat force and two aerial raid forces attacking the ones who have defeated 001! 003, 004, I want you to assist them, because those forces are only for softening them up to the level where you can defeat them."

All the Team Rocket elites left the room, and chatted amongst themselves.

"Who do you think'll be the next 001?" Domino (009) asked, "I'm probably not going to make the cut. I haven't been in the force for that many years"

"Who do you think it's gonna be?" 005 asked sarcastically and pointed at 002 "Number 2's gonna be moved. What worries me is that if a new guy becomes number one"

"Oh come on!" 003 pushed his shoulder, "It took me EIGHT years just to get a number! Neither Cassidy nor Butch can get a number, and their some of the best of the regular agents. Although Jessie and James HAVE gotten pretty strong lately and surpassed their level by a lot… but none of them are even close to our levels!"

"Does that really matter? Even if a newbie joins, it won't change any of OUR rankings and things will stay the same, although if he ends up as the next number nine, then that means we'll be squeezed into one level up!" 004 pulled out a pokéball, "FEAROW!"

"FEARWROOOOW!" Fearow cawed

"I've got a flying type, so I'll be in the battlefield first! See ya there number 3!" 004 grabbed a rope Fearow held in his talons. Fearow took off into the air, and carried 004.

003 sighed, "I have GOT to get a flying type, or at least a car…" She turned around and ran into a corridor. She would have to get there by foot, which would take considerably longer...

(Location- Ice Blue Mountain valley, South/Teal Ville North Exit)

"Man! They just don't know when to quit! Well, teach 'em with HydroThunder!" Ash yelled. Totodile fired jet of water, and Pikachu electrified it. Despite her ground-type attributes, the water took away the electric defence and Nidoqueen went down.

"He got Nidoqueen! NO!" A female Team Rocket grunt shrieked.

"Okay! She's down! Hold together guys, they're almost all gone!" Ash told his pokémon, "Cyndaquil! Smokescreen!"

"CYNDA, QUUIIIIIIIIL!" Cyndaquil breathed out a black cloud of smoke, blinding all the pokémon and giving a wide opening.

"Noctowl and Bayleef! Quick Attack the Machoke! Vine Whip that Golduck!" Ash commanded his pokémon. The two attacks hit their targets and those pokémon went down. "PERFECT! That's the last one of her pokémon!" Pikachu jumped and shocked her. The Team Rocket Grunt blacked out… Ash turned to the last one standing. "Heh… that leaves only you"

"GRRR! I DON'T THINK SO!" The last one shouted, "I'll teach you to underestimate me!" He grabbed four pokéballs, "GOOOOOOOO!" He shouted, releasing his pokémon. Hitmonlee! Nidoking! Dodrio! And Porigon2!

"Whoa! This one may have some pretty big guys, but we survived Tyranitar and none of those ones are even close to him! All right! You're up Cyndaquil! Use flamethrower!" Cyndaquil fired his flame attack and Hitmonlee was burned up.

"HITMONLEE! NOO!!" Rocket Brother growled, "You may have taken down one big brute, but Nidoking is still up, and I've still got my speedster and prize fighter! Porygon2! Freeze them with blizzard! Nidoking, smash 'em up! And give Nidoking some support thrashing Dodrio!" Porygon2's eyes flashed and from its body, a freezing, snowy blizzard wind blew, freezing all of Ash's pokémon in their places. "Ha-HAAA! Once a pokémon is frozen, it's impossible to recover!"

"During the last decade, that may have been the case, but I've got a move that'll defrost my guys, pronto!" Ash turned to the frozen Cyndaquil, "Cyndaquil! Melt the ice with Flame Wheel…!"

"HIT HIM WITH POISON STING, NIDOKING!" The Team Rocket Brother yelled out. Nidoking charged and attacked Cyndaquil. The ice shattered, and Cyndaquil went down, poisoned and KO'd. "HAHAHA! I learned a lot from watching Agent 001 fight! Your pokémon are all frozen and useless!"

"And you should know, I beat agent 001! I know 001, and you're nowhere near as strong as him! Even before the defrosting flame moves were discovered, THESE items have been in stores for years!" Ash sprayed his pokémon with something. The ice encasing them started to steam and melt, "Freeze heals and other healing items aren't normally aren't legal to use during a pokémon battle, but this isn't a battle with pokémon league rules and regulations! Pikachu! Attack with Thundershock!"

"Pika-CHUU!"

"DOOO!" Dodrio went down

"AGH! There goes my fast attack fighter! Well, no matter! Porygon2! Use CONVERSION2!"

"PORY!" Porygon2's eyes flashed, and it's element switched

_CONVERSION2! Conversion2 is a technique that changes the pokémon's type to one that its opponent's attack is weak against._

"Ha-HAAA! Way to go Porygon2!"

"That won't work! Pikachu! Paralyze him and the Porygon2 with Thunder Wave!"

"PI-KA-CHUUUUUUUUU!"

"GAGH! I-I… CAN'T MOVE!" The Team Rocket brother struggled to move, and Porygon2 seemed to be suffering the same effects.

"Now smash them with Vine Whip, Bayleef!" Ash commanded

"BAY! BAAAAAY-LEEF!" Bayleef grabbed Porygon2 with one vine and the rocket agent with the other. They were lifted into the air, and Bayleef slammed their heads together, and dropped them to the ground.

Nidoking roared in anger, and then sweatdropped. He was surrounded by a group of pokémon who could very well beat him up bad, and his trainer was down and out, so there was no one to guide him. No matter! A good trainer trained him and he knows all the attacks he could learn. He could still fight! "GROAAAR! (Double kick)" Nidoking jumped high into the air, ready to attack

"USE ICE PILLAR!" Misty shouted

**CRASH!**

"GRUARR!" Nidoking dropped out of the fell out of the air when the solidified pillar slammed his face. He hit the ground and fainted.

"Misty!?" Ash turned around and saw her

**BAM! SMASH! POW!**

Misty swung a large mallet and three Team Rocket agents went flying in different directions.

"Misty!" Ash exclaimed, "What are you doing here!?"

Misty rested the mallet on her shoulder, "Can't a girl go out and bash peoples heads once in a while?"

Ash sweatdropped, "Yeah, well I told you to go after THOSE ones over there! You're stealing guys from MY plate!"

"I finished my batch before you did, slowpoke!" Misty teased him

Ash changed the subject, "Yeah… well… where's Brock?"

"He's at the mountainside! Battling the rest of the force!" Misty answered

"He's battling? But these guys put up a tough fight, and what if Jessie and James are there? They're much stronger than earlier, and they're strong enough to beat Brock! Or even worse, what if there's a Team Rocket Elite?" Ask asked and started running to the base of the mountains, "We have to go up and help!"

(Location- Brock's battle/Foot of the Ice Blue Mountain)

"Geodude! MEGA PUNCH NOW!" Brock shouted. Geodude slammed Drowzee with his stone fist, and Drowzee fainted. "Rock throw on his trainer!" The team Rocket grunt yelped as a rock flew and slammed his face. He went down… "All right! That's what you get for messing with Brock the Rock! Who's next?" Brock started hearing laugher. He turned around and saw…

"If you think you've escaped from trouble…" said Jessie

"Then prepare yourself, you've just made it DOUBLE!" James shouted

"To protect the world from devastation!"

"To unite all people within our nation!"

"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"

"To extend our reach to the stars above!"

"Jessie!"

"James!"

"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now or prepare to fight-fight-fight!"

"MEOWTH! That's RIIIGHT!" Meowth jumped from the mountainside

"You again?!" Brock exclaimed

"We may be late, but that's because we've been practicing and getting stronger!" Jessie laughed, "Even Wobuffet knows some new attacks! Why don't we demonstrate our new level? GOOOO!" She released her pokémon

"UGH! I'm gonna need EVERY one of my guys! EVERYBODY! GO!" Brock released his pokémon. "Onix! Use Rock Slide!" Brock panted, "We have to be careful! They can actually put up a tough fight now!"

"Wobuffet! COUNTER!" Jessie commanded. Wobuffet glowed and the rocks that hit him flew back towards Onix.

"ONIX! DIG!" Onix dove underground and the rocks missed him. "Attack Wobuffet

from below!" Brock knew that Wobuffet couldn't counter that way. From right underneath Wobuffet, Onix came from under the ground and slammed Wobuffet into the air. "FINISH HIM OFF WITH STRENGHT!"

"GRROOOAAA!" Onix roared and attacked Wobuffet as he fell to the ground

"Wobuffet! Hurry! USE DESTINY BOND!" Jessie yelled

_DESTINY BOND! If one pokémon goes down, so does the other one. Even if the one who used it causes its opponent to faint, it'll go down too. This attack is usually done by a pokémon facing an opponent MUCH stronger than him or herself._

"What? NOOO!" Brock shouted, but he was too late. The second Onix attacked Wobuffet, an aura spread around both of them, and as Wobuffet fainted, Onix got hurt and collapsed… "ONIX! ARGHT! There goes my prizefighter! I'm gonna have to be more careful! GEODUDE! Up your defence with harden and then attack!"

"GEODUE! GEEEE!" Geodude crossed his arms and concentrated hard. His stone body was hardening, getting more rugged and tougher, not only was his defence going up, but this meant his stone fists were getting tougher and he'd be able to hit harder. Thankfully, he was a species of pokémon that would benefit in both attack and defence from harden.

"Okay! Geodude, time to rock and roll, and trash them! SLAM 'EM!" Brock commanded

"WHEEZING! Use sludge attack! Blind his pokémon!" James yelled

"Wheezing! WHEEEZ!!" Wheezing fired several piles of sludge into the faces of Brock's pokémon, hurting them as well as blinding them

"Heh-heh! It's been a while since I had him do that!" James laughed

"NO!" Brock exclaimed. Geodude stopped, and Victreebell attacked him while he was blinded. Brock was losing this battle! He turned his head and could see Pineco glowing, ready to explode. This gave him an idea! Brock decided to put that to good use. "HAAA!" He kicked Pineco as hard as he can like a soccer ball

"Pine… COOOOO!" In a bright flash, Pineco released all of his energy in a gigantic explosion.

"GWAAAA! I didn't even get my chance to fight!" Meowth exclaimed as he flew through the air

"TEAM ROCKET'S BLASTING OFF AGAAAAIN (Ping)"

Brock dropped to his knees, today has been very exhausting…

"BROCK!" Ash yelled and rushed into the field on his board. He jumped off and slung it across his back. "Are you okay? Have Jessie and James arrived yet?"

"Yeah…" Brock sighed, "I just sent them blasting off just now…"

"Then I guess we won!" Ash turned around, "Ahhhh… here comes Misty"

"Ash! (Pant…) Why… don't you actually… wait for me the next time!?" She gasped for air, "How did you get here so fast?!"

Ash smirked, he hasn't shown the QuickSilver to Misty yet. "Well… another day, another battle. This is what I've been training for all this time, and this time when we beat them, I didn't even have to start using my Tauros herd this time! Maybe the next time, I won't even have to call back any hurt pokémon and switch for a fresh one! Whew… with all those Missingno and super Fiends, I almost forgot we were fighting Team Rocket…"

**KABOOOM!**

"WA!" Ash yelled. There was a loud explosion in the middle of the square and the whole area filled with smoke

"Not bad, NOT BAD…" They heard a voice, "You've insulted Team Rocket over and over again. You have defeated all the combat squads, Jessie and James, and most importantly, 001…" He stepped out. Dressed in a black and white uniform, with a white headband blowing in the wind. He struck a pose… "I may not be as strong as 001, but I'm just as skilled! Allow me to introduce myself. Just like 001, from the elite ranks of Team Rocket, I wear the number proudly! I am 004!"

Ash and Misty pulled out pokéballs, and Brock was sprayed his pokémon with max potions and cracked open Revive canisters over the ones that fainted. Ash was the first one to speak up, "Only number four? Three levels below double oh one! Which means we won't be having too much trouble with you!"

"Heh-heh! Come on little boy!" 004 laughed, "FEAROW! DRILL PECK!"

"WAAAA!" Ash yelled as Fearow swooped, spinning like drill. He turned around and sweatdropped as Fearow cut through a tree like a buzz saw. "HEY! That coulda hurt!"

"That was the intention!" 004 laughed and pointed at Ash "Fearow, use Drill Peck again!"

"Pikachu! Totodile! HYDROTHUNDER!!" The water/electric attack shot forwards

"ICE PILLAR!" Misty yelled. The large pillar of ice flew and smashed against Fearow's body. The pillar went to pieces, and Fearow went down. "Ha-HA! Way to go!" Misty cheered, but Brock groaned.

"Everyone's got a combo move but me…" Brock sighed

"GRRR…" 004 pulled out some more pokéballs, "GLIGAR! HYPNO! CLOYSTER! BEEDRILL! MAGMAR! GOOOO!" He released his team, "I'm no average Joe pokémon trainer, and I'm one of the best! Gligar! Start 'em off with swift attack!" Gligar launched a series of sharp little stars.

"PIKACHU! Use light screen!" Ash yelled. Pikachu's cheeks sparked, and a screen of light formed in front of all of them. The stars broke and went to pieces when they hit the screen. "Bayleef! Razor leaf!" Razor sharp leaves soared through the air

"Magmar! Flamethrower!" 004 yelled, blasting the leaves out of the air, "Cloyster! Use spike cannon!"

"Cloy-STER!" The spikes on Cloyster's shell exploded outwards and shot at the screen. The spikes were a lot stronger than the stars, and they punctured the screen.

"They're wide open now! Magmar, attack with Fire Blast!" 004 yelled

"Water gun!" Misty yelled. Not bothering to think of who the order was directed to, every pokémon with that water attack sprayed a powerful jet of water, completely extinguishing the powerful flames completely, and also hosing down the sender.

"MARRRR!" Magmar lost a lot of HP

"Argh! Magmar!" 004 yelled, "Hypno! Use Hypnosis!"

"_HYP-NOOOO…_" Hypno started waving his coin

"Guys! Don't look!" Brock turned his head and covered his eyes. Too late, Bayleef, Crobat and Staryu were already affected by the attack.

"Ha-HA!" 004 laughed

"Quick! The awakenings…!" Ash pulled out several vials of awakenings…

"HYPNO! Get rid of those items with confusion!" 004 commanded. Hypno shot his hand outward, and the vials of awakening smashed before Ash could use them. "HA! Awakenings are the only items you could use to wake up your pokémon after an attack like so, and you don't have a poké flute, so your pokémon are helpless against this attack! DREAM EATER!"

"Dream Eater?! NOOO!" Ash exclaimed, but too late. Hypno used Dream Eater, and the damage was done. Not only was a significant amount of HP removed from the pokémon, but the energy went and strengthened Hypno, making him even stronger. Crobat and Bayleef got hurt and collapsed…

"Beedrill! Use Twineedle!" On 004's command, Beedrill swooped downwards and attacked with all his stingers.

"GEEE!" Geodude yelled from the stings

"You may be an elite, but that wasn't smart putting a bug type against a rock! GEODUDE! Attack!" Brock shouted

"DUDE!" Geodude uppercutted Beedrill, then grabbed onto Beedrill's head with both hands and pulled him forwards…

**BAM!**

Geodude slammed Beedrill's face with his head. Beedrill backed off, it was still up, but not unscathed.

"GRRR… Magmar, use Fire…"

"HYDROTHUNDER!" Ash yelled

"ICE PILLAR!" Misty yelled

Totodile fired a large jet of water, and Pikachu strengthened it with electricity. The hit slammed into Magmar, removing a LARGE amount of his HP. Then a large solid pillar of ice slammed him in the face. As it hit him, his body heat caused it to melt, splashing his entire fiery body with icy cold water. Magmar got hurt and collapsed…

"Magmar! NO!" 004 exclaimed.

"Perfect! Now use another Ice Pillar… " said Misty, but she stopped… she had a feeling, something was coming… "THERE!" she spun around and pointed at a tree

"HA!" All of the pokémon with the water gun attack fired at the tree

"POLIIII!" Politoed froze the jet of water into a solid pillar of ice with his ice beam

The solid pillar of ice flew towards a tree, but it swung its branch and smashed the pillar to pieces. A pair of eyes opened up…

"What the… it's a Sudowoodo!" Ash exclaimed

Sudowoodo frowned. With all its might, it slammed HARD against the side of the mountain. The mountain rumbled…

"WAAA! MOVE!" Ash ran some distance away, followed closely by his friends and pokémon, narrowly getting away from the falling boulders. "(Whew) WHAT WAS THAT?! ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL US!?" He yelled angrily at 004, but 004 just shrugged

"What are you yelling at HIM for? That Rock Slide attack was from me!" Everyone turned around. Standing on the side of the mountain, the black scarf blowing in the wind… she struck a pose "I'm not as strong as 001 either, but with two of Giovanni's finest soldiers, even a pokémon league champion will fall, and none of you are even close to a champion! I am 003!"

"Another one?!" Brock exclaimed

"Heh-heh-HEEEH… EVERYBODY, GOOOO!" 003 threw all her pokéballs, releasing her full team, Sudowoodo, Delibird, Jynx, Jumpluff and Sneasel. "All right! Lets start of by debilitating them! Jumpluff! Use cotton spore!"

"JUUUUUUUUMP!" Jumpluff launched its attack

_COTTON SPORE! This attack is grass element and will lower the speed of the opponent pokémon by two levels!_

"They're slower! We get first strike and their evade level's gone down! Now give 'em a taste of what's to come Delibird! POWDER SNOW!"

"DELIIIII!" Delibird cawed and opened its beak wide. An icy wind flew, and Ash and his friends all felt freezing power of the attack.

"AN OPENING! Attack Sneasel!" 003 ordered

"SNEASE… EL!" Sneasel leaped forwards, claws outstretched

"Let's give her some heavy support! Use spike cannon, Cloyster!"

"CLOYSTER!" Large spikes flew from Cloyster's shell, towards the group

"PIKA-CHUUUUU!" Pikachu put as much power as he can into a light screen attack. Sneasel crashed and slid off the invisible wall, and the spikes were crushed to dust when they hit. Pikachu dropped the barrier.

"Nice going Pikachu!" Ash turned to his opponents, "Rest and recharge your batteries, because I'm gonna need you at full power!" Pikachu nodded, and sighed

"All right! They're not the only ones who can debilitate! Cyndaquil's revived, so use Sacred Fire!" Ash pointed at all of them.

"CYNDA… QUIIIIIIIIIL!" Cyndaquil launched the attack

_SACRED FIRE! This attack has a fifty percent chance of burning an opponent!_

"Smart move! Burn damage does even more damage than poison!" said Brock, "Well, time to some battling myself! This'll do some damage! Pineco, use spikes!"

"PINECO!" Pineco used spikes

_SPIKES! Every time an opponent switches a pokémon, it'll do damage_

"GRRR…" 00 3 and 4 growled, unless they wanted to do damage to do damage to their pokémon, they'd have to use one at a time like all good trainer do. And speaking of good trainers, the good guys are free to use all THEIR guys at once! Oh well… they're gonna have to sacrifice the HP for strength…

"Before they can attack! Cyndaquil! Flame Thrower the Sneasel! Noctowl, use Psybeam on Beedrill! Totodile, water gun Sudowoodo!" Ash ordered his pokémon to attack the ones they were super effective against. Each one went down from those hits, all except for Sudowoodo…

"Sudowoodo! Use FLAIL!" 003 yelled

_FLAIL! The lower the HP, the stronger the attack!_

"Su-do-woo-DOOOOO!!!" Sudowoodo slammed all three, Totodile, Noctowl and Cyndaquil, taking them down in one hit.

"WHAT?! NO WAY!" Ash yelled

"SUDOOOO…" Sudowoodo got hurt and collapsed. The water gun left its HP at 1, and the effects of the spikes attack and the burn damage didn't help him very much

"Sudowoodo! Return!" 003 called her pokémon back into its pokéball

"We can't afford to lose this match!" yelled Ash, "But with Totodile out, HydroThunder is a move I won't be able to use!"

"No sweat! My water pokémon can handle it!" Said Misty

"No! That move's dangerous and the electricity can easily hurt the water pokémon sending the water! The only one of your pokémon who even knows the basic part of the move is Staryu, and even then it's risky!" Ash growled, "And Ice Pillar is only designed for hitting one pokémon at a time! Well no matter! We'll just have to beat them the old fashion way! Misty? Do you happen to have a TM 14 on you right now?"

"TM 14, is Blizzard, right?" Asked Misty, "No, sorry! But I did give TM 13 (ice beam) to Politoed a while ago!"

"Good enough!" said Ash, "Okay! Please, tell your pokémon to listen to my orders!"

"Right!!" Misty and Brock answered, they knew Ash had a plan

"OKAY!" Ash clapped his hands together and smirked. 003 and 004 however, weren't about to let Ash unleash whatever attack he was going to use

"Sneasel! Use Faint Attack!" 003 yelled

_FAINT ATTACK! Similar to swift, this attack NEVER misses! Or so you think…_

"PIKACHU!" Pikachu jumped forwards and attacked Sneasel with his electricity, sending her flying.

"ALL RIGHT! LET'S END THIS!" Ash yelled, "On my mark! All water pokémon excluding Politoed, FIRE your water guns!" As the water pokémon's jets of water were in full blast and made contact with their opponents, Ash called out the next phase, "Use Rock Throw, anyone who knows it!" the large rocks flew into the jet of water. Boosted by the intense water current, they slammed their targets. Ash yelled the next phase "Politoed! Use Ice Beam on the enemies!"

"POLI!" Politoed fired a chilling ice beam, freezing the enemies solid!

"PERFECT! And to think Ice beam only has a Ten Percent Chance of freezing its opponent! And the final blow… PINECO! EXPLOSION!" Pineco started glowing, and Ash kicked Pineco like a soccer ball towards their frozen opponents.

**KABOOM!!!**

"GREAAAAAARGH!" 003 and 004 shouted as they flew through the air

"I always thought Jessie and James nothing but failures…" 003 groaned

"But these guys really ARE tough!" 004 yelled

"We had to learn it the hard way, because WE'RE BLASTING OFF!"

"Whew…" Ash dropped to his knees and sighed. He then sprung up, "YES! WE WON!"

"HA-HAAA!" Misty cheered

"Doesn't matter who you are, as long as we're a team, NO ONE can beat us!" Brock clapped

"Heh-heh… yeah…" Ash gave one final sigh and collapsed

"ASH!" Brock and Misty exclaimed, running over to him

"What happened to him?!" said Brock

"Hmm… I see" said Misty, "Ash had just been attacked by all his pokémon, and was hurt all along, even through the battle!"

"What do you mean?"

"Well…" Misty exclaimed Ash's… Pester Ball training to Brock, "…And even though injured, he completely blocked out everything and was focused ONLY on the battle!"

"Whoa… Ash did all that?" Brock said in awe, "That's crazy! Even among pokémon Masters, very few can pull off something like that!"

"Well, Ash IS a future Master, isn't he?" Misty smiled, "Come on, help me carry him…" Misty pulled Ash up and used her shoulder to support him, while Brock used his. The three of them walked off, leaving the battlefield…

(Location- Higher up on Ice Blue mountain)

"Hm…" Sky Render watched from above, Misty and Brock carry Ash away. "Impressive. To fight on, even past his limits… this Ketchum may actually grow into a serious contender. But still… if he considers such a small-scale battle to be a real victory, he wouldn't last a second against us, or the Kaisers…"

"That's it? You dragged us all the way up here, just to see one lousy low-level battle, and then say stuff we already know?!" G.I. Jolt complained, irritated by the cold.

"Don't ever doubt our leader, Jolt!" Said Cleft, "I mean, just look where we are! It's pretty obvious that he's in need of MY talents, and just called us all here to watch ME bring victory to the Fiends!" He said triumphantly, "One punch, and I'll make a huge rockslide that'll crush them like insects and…"

"You know what Cleft? Shut up" Sky Render said firmly, and Cleft stopped talking. "Ketchum is Aquamarine's enemy, and anyone who gets in the way of his fights get trashed along with the enemy, don't forget."

"Ugh…" The rest of the Fiends sighed, and Bonsai spoke up "Sorry Sky, but we have to go! It's way too cold for us up here!"

"Speak for yourself, I'm rather comfortable up here!" said AntiArctic as they all left

The rest of the fiends walked off, but Sky Render remained, staring down at Ash and the group, leaving the scene. He smirked "Somehow, I get the feeling this battle's going to be rather interesting… pity that Aquamarine is gonna finish off so sudden, because I wouldn't mind challenging him myself…"

_Though the Team Rocket Elites 003 and 004 have been defeated, and Ash and co. are getting stronger than ever before, they are still nothing in comparison of what's to come. Though they may not realize it yet, Aquamarine is coming! Can Ash survive the dangerous Water Expert, or will his ongoing journey to become a Pokémon Master be cut short by the awesome power of the Super Fiends? Find out next time on Pokémon: Ultimate Adventures!_

_(TO BE CONTINUED)_


	10. Aquamarine's Challenge

Chapter 10- Aquamarine's Challenge

(Location- Scarlet City)

"(HMPH…) HAAAA!" G.I. Jolt slammed a brick wall with his large fists. The wall cracked and pieces of it fell to the ground

"No bad Jolt, but let me show you how to do this…" Cleft stepped up and slammed a spot on the wall with his metal gloves. In no time at all, the wall crumbled

"You're making me look bad…" G.I. Jolt growled

"Well you should be happy. After all, with FIENDS like us, who needs enemies?!"

**POW!**

"OW!" Cleft exclaimed when Bonsai punched him on the back of the head, "What was that for?!"

"You deserved it, for saying such a stupid joke!" said Bonsai

"You're saying my jokes are stupid? Well, my FISTS have something to say to you, as does my middle finger!" Cleft argued back

**BAM!**

"UGH!" Bonsai and Cleft were both knocked out, when G.I. Jolt grabbed their heads and slammed them into each other.

"That's better… thanks Jolt" AntiArctic sighed, "If those two didn't stop arguing soon, I swear, I would've killed them just to shut them up"

"Who wouldn't? They're like this whenever Sky's not around…" G.I. Jolt shrugged, "Speaking of Sky Render, tell me again, how come he's not letting us just go all out and BEAT that Ketchum kid up?!" G.I. Jolt complained

"It's just a precaution… You know Aquamarine, he always fights his battles alone because he tends to lose control and smash up everything, including us if we get involved." Twin Dreamer looked down on them from in the air, "Oh well, what HE doesn't know won't hurt us. HAAAAA…" Closed his eyes and stretched his hands out, towards the north end of the Green Forest. Using psychic power, he could see Ash… "We all know I'm a great psychic, now let's see how well I am a sniper!" His eyes flashed. "TWIN DREAM!!!!" Two beams of energy spiralled through the air…

(Location- Green Forest)

"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!" Jessie yelled as she jumped from the tree branch

"Surrender now or prepare to fight!" James shouted as he jumped down

"Meowth! That's RIGHT!" Meowth finished the motto and jumped.

"HAA!" Ash threw the rings he swiped from the 00 elites. Each one of them clamped and locked their legs together…

**CRASH!**

Jessie, James and Meowth screamed as they hit the ground head first. "Oh yeah!" Ash cheered at the success of his 'ring toss', "Not only am I the master of pokémon, but I am also the Lord of the R…" He stopped when Jessie, James and Meowth got up and threw off the rings. "Never mind…"

"YOU TWERP! YOU ARE GONNA PAY…" They all yelled

**WHOOSH!**

The Twin Dream beams flew inches above Ash's head. His hat was blown off by the rush of air, but the beam flew right at Team Rocket.

**KABOOM!!!**

"YEAAAARGH!" Team Rocket yelled as they flew through the air

"WHAT ON EARTH WAS THAT?!" Jessie yelled

"I DUNNO!" Meowth yelled, "ALL I KNOWS IS THAT…"

"TEAM ROCKET'S BLASTING OFF AGAAAAAIN! _(Ping!)_"

"Well… that was unexpected" Ash sweatdropped

(Location- Scarlet City)

"DAMMIT!" Twin Dreamer yelled, "I missed!"

"Ha! You really got to work on your aim TD!" G.I. Jolt smirked

"SHUT UP! DON'T CALL ME THAT! HAA!" Twin Dream fired his attack at Jolt, a different version of it, instead of a beam, it was a mind-burning wave…

"YAAAAAAH!" G.I. Jolt yelled, his head felt like a truck hit it, like it was about to explode, and then his mind went blank and he fell…

"Huh?" Bonsai, Cleft and AntiArctic looked up, just in time to see the gigantic figure of G.I. Jolt falling in their direction… "AAAAAAH!!!"

**CRASH!!!**

"(Sigh…) Of all the teams I could've joined… why did it have to be with this band of idiots?" Goth sighed as he sat on the top of the roof and watched them

(Location- Teal Ville streets)

Misty walked on the sidewalk, Togepi in her arms. After that last incident with Doppelganger, Ash hadn't let her out of his sight, with a few exceptions. Ash was hiding behind a telephone pole; make that, halfway up the pole. There were a few people staring at him. Although he kept out of Misty's sight, total stealth wasn't one of his specialties.

"No, there is no reason in particular I'm following her, Pikachu" said Ash

"Pika?" Pikachu said curiously, standing on Ash's shoulder.

"For the last time Pikachu, I am NOT stalking Misty!" Ash said angrily

"Kachu? Pi Pika!"

"I'm not hiding!"

"Pi Pikachu!"

"I'm up here because it's fun to climb telephone poles!"

"Pika, Pika!" Pikachu pointed downwards

"No, why would I be worried?" Ash looked down, "WAAAA! Where'd she go?" He slid down the pole, "WAAAA! SPLINTERS!" He waved his hands frantically.

(Somewhere else in the Teal Ville Streets)

Misty walked down the streets, minding her own business, when she stopped. Ahead of her, there was a guy walking in her direction. He didn't see her, but before he did, Misty ran into an alley. The guy had sleek blue hair, a dark blue T-shirt with a black vest and a silver chain around his neck. He also had a metal object slung across his back. The guy was about as old as her, but and a little shorter than Brock. He wore black biking gloves, same design as Ash's but these one had studs on the back of the hand. The guy walked right past her, and Misty sighed in relief.

"(Good, he didn't see me)" She sighed, "How did he know where to find me? Oh well, that doesn't matter, just as long as he doesn't see me! UGH… this is gonna give Ash some trouble…"

"Give me what kind of trouble?" asked Ash, appearing right behind her

"WA!" Misty jumped, "ASH! Don't do that!" She punched Ash over the head

"Ow" He sweatdropped "What kind of trouble?"

"Well Ash… it's like this…"

(A few minutes later)

"WAWAWA-WHA-WHAA-WHAAAAT?!" Ash exclaimed, "BOYFRIEND?!?!"

"I already told you! He may have a crush on me, but he is NOT my boyfriend!" Misty said angrily "That guy is SO annoying! The more I hate him, the more he loves me! The main reason I left Cerulean city was to get away from that idiot. Unfortunately he's not just a regular idiot, he's a persistent idiot… ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING?!"

Ash's eye was twitching "Boyfriend… she has a boyfriend… she has a boyfriend…"

"Will you SNAP OUT OF IT!" Misty slammed him with a mallet. "I just told you, I really HATE that guy! He thinks he could impress me by being a strong trainer. That didn't impress me. I have never liked him, and never will!" Misty pulled up her backpack and reached inside, "Now where is it… AHA! Here it is!" Misty tossed aside the dinky little wooden mallet, and pulled out a GIGANTIC Sledgehammer, "I've been saving this one since the start of my journey in case that moron ever shows up again! This hammer can bust up diamonds as if they were made of glass! Now if that loser starts stalking me again… I can just bash his head…"

"So, you're saying you never kissed or anything?" Ash asked nervously.

**BAM!**

"You haven't even been listening!" Misty shouted after she bashed Ash's head with diamond-busting hammer, "There's no way I'm gonna waste MY first kiss on HIM! To me, the first kiss is just as valuable as my virginity…" Misty stopped and checked to see if Ash was finally listening, to her relief, yes. "Anyways, after I slapped him with that first restraining order, I quickly left Cerulean City to go on my journey, but chances are he also decided to go on a journey of his own. So just… watch out, because I know him, and he is REALLY determined, and has probably been training three of four times harder than you. Anyways… let's beat it. I'm not sticking around for him to find me!" She stepped out of the alley.

Ash sighed in relief and stepped out of the alley, following her. What they didn't know was that Aquamarine, who was also second strongest out of the Super Fiends… was standing up on the rooftops, watching them right now.

"I didn't hear WHAT they said. But that guy… acting so… FAMILIAR around her… just WHO does he think he is?! Wait a second…" Aquamarine looked through a pair of binoculars; he could see Ash's face clearly. "That's Ash Ketchum!" He spoke, looking through the binoculars, "Defeated Team Rocket on many occasions, and the mighty elite agents 001, 003 and 004. Then he defeated Doppelganger and insulted the Missingno and the Super Fiends, and if what I heard is true…" He pulled down the binoculars, "HE'S the guy traveling with Misty?!" He held picked up a photocopy of a certain picture (the one Pikachu took in Ch. 5, with Ash and Misty leaning towards each other, their faces only an inch apart and they look like they're about to…) "UN-FOR-GIVABLE!" He ripped the picture in half. "ASH KETCHUM! You've done some damage, but THIS CROSSES THE LINE! You may have beaten Doppelganger, but I'm stronger in EVERY WAY! ASH KETCHUM! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" He crushed the binoculars to pieces. As he dropped the pieces, he sighed, "Ugh… I have GOT to stop doing that. This is how I lost my cell phone, my pokédex, my gameboy, and this is why I have to get up to change channels…"

(Location- Teal Ville streets)

"All right, now just where is that dead-man Ash hiding?" Aquamarine asked himself, looking left and right for the one who matched the picture, "Hmm… let's see. If I were an ugly kid with a horizontal Harry Potter scar on each cheek and stupid enough to try and steal away MY girlfriend, Misty, where would I be?"

(Meanwhile)

"♪Rolling around at the speed of sound, got places to go, gotta follow my rainbow… Can't stick around, have to KEEP moving on, just what lies ahead, only ONE way to FIND out! Must keep on moving ahead, no time for guessing, follow my plan instead! Trusting in what you can't see, take my lead, I'LL SET YOU FREE! Follow me, set me free, trust me and we will escape from the city, I'll make it through, follow me…♫" Ash sung as he sped down the road, listening to a CD. He turned it off for a second and switched the headphone feature to the transceiver phone, "Hey Ebi!" Ash called him through the transceiver headphone, "How do you turn up to the super speed?"

"(CRRR…) Why do you want it?" Ebi asked

"I got several reasons (along with this song putting me in the mood to go faster) I've completely mastered flying this thing and the rings stuff, and now I want to try to master super speed" Ash answered "I tried to do the foothold twisting thing, but the clips wouldn't budge this time!"

"I changed it because it's dangerous! And activating it with the footholds is risky and it could be turned on by accident! Why do you want to learn it?"

"Two reasons!" He said, "One, if I've mastered Super Speed, then I've PERFECTED regular! Two, Misty hasn't seen this thing, and I want to have completely master this thing by the time she does! I wanna look cool doing this!"

"(CRRR…) In short, you wanna impress her right?" Said Ebi

"NO!" Ash yelled, "And don't change the subject! How do I use it?"

"Fine…" Ebi sighed, "I've changed the commands! You don't twist the holds or anything! Now it's voice activated! All you have to do is say…" He spelled out the words, "I'd say the real word, but it'd turn up the speed right now and you'd crash! Say it a second time to slow down! Hey Ash! Think it's safe to do it here? Don't you want to do it in the forest? You've practiced regular flying there!"

"No way! Too many trees, too many obstacles! I crashed into too many earlier on! I'll give it a shot when I get used to straight line flying!" Said Ash "Okay! Here goes…" Ash took a deep breath "Maximum… uh… afterburner" The boosters flared up and the entire scenery went all blurry. Ash was flying at a tremendous speed "WAAAAA!" Although this time, it wasn't AS bad as the first, but in all the confusion, obstacles are hard to notice…

Aquamarine turned around and saw Ash. (Ash is a fair distance away, and approaching at a high speed) "ASH KETCHUM! I AM GOING TO KILL…"

**BAM!!! **

"WAK!" Aquamarine fell to the ground when the board flying at the speed of sound hit him on the forehead, "GWUH…"

Ash yelled the words out a second time and the board slowed down to its normal speed. Ash sighed in relief. He could tell he's no longer going the speed if sound because he could hear again.

"(BZZT!) ASH! I heard a metal clanking somewhere along the way! Did you hit something?" Ebi asked through the transceiver as Ash zoomed on the QuickSilver

"I dunno!" Ash shrugged as he landed "The only thing on my mind were the bugs flying into my mouth! PWAH!" He spat out all the insects and picked up the board. As he was walking, he noticed Aquamarine lying on the sidewalk, with a large bump on his forehead. "Hey! Are you okay?"

"GWUH…" Aquamarine didn't notice Ash

"Meh…" Ash shrugged and walked off, putting the headphones back on, "♪…Danger is lurking around every turn, trust your feelings, got to LIVE AND LEARN…♫"

An hour later, Aquamarine got up and rubbed his head, "Agh… ow… GRRR… After I KILL Ash Ketchum, I'm gonna hunt down whoever hit me back there!"

(Location- Teal Ville Town Square)

"All right guys! Use the combo attacks! HYDROTHUNDER" Ash yelled. Totodile fired the jet of water and Pikachu electrified it. The electrical water was too much and Dragonite fell to the ground. "What's the matter? Too much for ya?" Ash smiled

"GRRRR!" the punk growled

Another punk, dressed sort of like a Pirate stepped forwards, "You may have beaten me once, but you're not gonna win again! Everybody, GO!" He threw all his pokéballs, releasing Donphan, Machamp, Venomoth, Golem and Pinsir came out.

"All right!" Ash clapped his hands together, "You were never THAT strong a trainer, and I remember that battle we had (in pokémon the first movie) a long time ago!"

After a very short fight all the guys and their pokémon were beaten

"I wouldn't be so harsh on your guys, but you should've thought of THAT before joining the Missingno gang you jerks!" Ash called out at them.

"GRRRR… RETURN!" Pirate called back his pokémon

"So it's true, this kid really DID beat Doppelganger!" the punks gasped, "This is bad! We're no match for him! RUN AWAY!" they all ran

"Oh yeah! Gotta love pokémon team battles! That way I can use combination attacks! Great work guys!" He called all his pokémon into pokéballs, "Okay! That's victory number 48! My pokémon must have at least levelled up at least twenty levels each! By now, I could take on anyone! Team Rocket, Missingno, Super Fiend, BRING EM ON! Who wants to battle me next?!" He called out, and sweatdropped. Everyone in the area ran away, both good the bad. "Lousy deadbeats! Am I just too strong for you?!" He sighed, "No one wants to battle… STUPID JERKS!" He looked and in the distance he could still see the group of Missingno henchmen running. He picked up a solid Pester Ball and hurled it as hard as he could…

**SMACK!**

"GWAH!" One of them fell over, face-flat to the ground. The ball opened up and released its foul smelling gas, causing all the punks to cough and yell. The gas cleared, and they turned their heads and looked at him.

"Come on! If that doesn't get them to fight me, then I don't know what will!" Ash said anxiously. He sweatdropped as they continued to run, "Okay… then I don't know what will. No one wants to battle, and I'm on a roll…" He sighed. He suddenly snapped back to attention, his instincts were warning him… "DANGER!" He raised the QuickSilver and spun around just in time. The harpoon flying at him ricocheted off his shield and flew into a statue, decapitating it.

Ash looked at the harpoon. The rope attached to it pulled it out of the rubble, and Ash looked to where it was headed. There was a sound of metal clanking as it withdrew into a metal gun. Aquamarine (he had a large band-aid on his forehead) held the gun, growling and then slung it across his back, "Damn, I almost got him"

"WHAT TH'HELL'S YOUR PROBLEM?!" Ash yelled at him, his heart still beating a mile a minute and his hands were shaking.

"Feh… after all the stuff you did, you ask me what's MY problem?" Aquamarine laughed to himself, "Talk about the irony. And they call US fiends…"

**SMACK!**

"GAK!" Aquamarine fell over when Ash threw the statue head at him.

"Now we're even! And before I start clobbering you, you'd better tell me who YOU ARE!" Ash yelled at Aquamarine

"Grrr…" Aquamarine growled as he pulled the harpoon gun off his back and aimed it at Ash, and pulled the trigger.

"HMM!" Ash stepped to the side and caught the harpoon in his hand. Letting it fall to the ground, he shouted, "That harpoon trick is real lame! Even Doppelganger's smoke and mirror is more impressive than that!" Ash and Pikachu stepped forwards

Aquamarine withdrew the harpoon back into the gun "Funny you should mention that weakling, Doppelganger. Because I happen to be MUCH stronger than daddy's boy…" He crossed his arms, and pulled out a pokéball, "Kraken, GO!" He released his pokémon. It was a Tentacruel. A HUGE Tentacruel

"WA! Since when do Tentacruel get that big?" Ash gasped, looking at the fifteen-foot tall pokémon

"Back in Puerto Vista a few years back, I saw some Team Rocket clowns dump some chemicals on a Tentacool and made it evolve into a massive Tentacruel. I did the same thing, but used less of the stuff and watered down the chemicals, and that's how I got Kraken!"

"Whatever! Size doesn't matter with high levels! You can beat him Pikachu!"

"PIKAAA!" Pikachu shocked Kraken

Kraken wasn't hurt, but angry "TENTA!" Kraken whipped down with his Tentacle. The concrete ground cracked, and Pikachu barely dodged.

"CHU!!" Pikachu jumped up and shocked him with an even stronger attack

As Pikachu and Kraken continued to fight…

"I'M only gonna ask you once…" Aquamarine said coldly, "WHO do you think you are!"

"Well… I'm Ash Ketchum. 14 years old, I come from Pallet Town. I'm a great pokémon trainer. I rival with another high level trainer from Pallet (who used to be my best friend, but now he's just a lousy backstabber) and am in the top sixteen of the indigo pokémon league, Orange League champion, Johto league top…"

"Shut up!" He yelled, "I am Aquamarine! Cerulean City's number 1 trainer!"

"Aquamarine? Yeesh… talk about your girly names…" Ash stared at him, "Were your parents expecting a girl, or were just that cruel?"

"HEY! SHUT UP!" Aquamarine yelled, "I was asking who you think you are, being so… FAMILIAR around Misty!"

"I don't know what you're talking about…" Ash stared at him, "Wait a minute! You're the guy that Misty hates!" Ash then smirked and took a fighting stance, "Looks like I'll be adding another good deed to my list… when I eliminate Misty's idiot stalker!"

"WHAT'D YOU CALL ME?!" Aquamarine shouted, "THAT DOES IT! ASH KETCHUM! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" he pulled out his trident, "DEEP SKEWER!"

"WA!" Ash exclaimed as the attack almost hit him, but fortunately he tripped over, and missed it, "GRRR! HA!" Ash shouted, kicking his leg up…

**THUNK!**

"AGH…!" Aquamarine's eyes opened wide, when Ash kicked him in the groin… "URK!" He exclaimed when Ash jumped into the air and stomped on his head, slamming his face into the concrete so hard, the ground cracked

"FIRST YOU STALK MISTY, AND NOW YOU COME HERE TRYING TO KILL ME?! YOU RETARD! I'LL SHOW YOU!" Ash shouted as he kept kicking Aquamarine

"Pikachu!" Pikachu sweatdropped and continued to jump and dodge. Kraken SURE could hit hard with those tentacles, and that would REALLY hurt if he was whipped with one.

"TENTA-CRUUUUEL!" Kraken caught Pikachu in one of the tentacles, and sensed victory

"PIKAAA!!" Before Kraken could crush Pikachu, Pikachu unleashed a strong thunder wave, paralyzing Kraken. Because of the paralysis, Kraken couldn't move, and that gave Pikachu the opening he needed, "PI-KA-CHUUUUUU" With all the electricity in his body, Pikachu hit Kraken with the strongest thunder attack. Kraken got hurt and collapsed…

"Oh yeah! In your face, you retard!" Ash stood triumphantly on top of Aquamarine's body, with one foot on the fiend's head. Aquamarine wasn't moving, and it didn't look like he was breathing for that matter… (like anyone cares). Ash kicked Aquamarine one last time, and walked off. "Come on Pikachu, let's leave the retard here!" Ash stopped, and turned around. "Oh, and I'll take this too!" He bent over, reached into Aquamarine's pockets, took his wallet and walked off.

(Two hours later)

"So you're saying he beat you?" Sky Render spoke to Aquamarine over the phone.

"Yeah… ugh…" Aquamarine rubbed the back of the head

"Listen Aquamarine…" Said Sky Render, "You're a genius of battle. The earth trembles beneath your strength, and you defeat pokémon masters in a single breath. So tell me this. Just HOW did you lose to some unarmed kid!?"

"He wasn't unarmed! He had a flying skateboard!" Aquamarine complained

"Uh-huh… a flying skateboard"

"I'm telling the truth here!" Said Aquamarine

"Sure you are. Hold on for a second…" Sky Render put down the phone…

"Hmmm…" Aquamarine stood quietly, listening. On the other side, he could hear Sky Render, saying 'Hey guys! Get a load of this! Aquamarine says he lost because the kid has a flying skateboard!' followed by the unmistakable sound of mocking laugher coming from the rest of the fiends, "GRRR!" Aquamarine slammed the phone shut. "Damn you Ash Ketchum! First you steal Misty, now you humiliate me in the eyes of my team! GOD DAMMIT!" He slammed the wall with his fist, and the wall began to crumble, "GRRR!" Aquamarine growled, (a tear in his eye, clutching his now broken hand) "I swear… ASH KETCHUM! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!!"

(Location- Teal Ville Streets)

"ACHOO!" Ash sneezed as he walked down the streets. "Ugh… what was that all about?" he asked, wiping his nose…

**SMACK**!

"WA!" Ash fell face flat to the ground

"That is payback for what you did back there!" Aquamarine yelled, standing on Ash's head.

"WHY YOU!" Ash reached up and grabbed both of Aquamarine's ankles, tripping him. Ash got up and swung Aquamarine around by his legs and tossed him into the wall. "You again?! You wanna fight?!" Ash charged at Aquamarine

**WHAM!**

"Not now you idiot!" Aquamarine shouted as he uppercutted Ash, sending him flying "I'm only here to give you this!" Aquamarine, and tossed a letter to him.

"What's this?" Ash looked at it, "A challenge note?"

"A challenge note! What does it look like?!" Aquamarine yelled, running off

"Fine then!" Ash opened the letter. Sure enough, it was a challenge note.

**I challenge you! Meet me tomorrow in the GreenForest Clearing ,near the lake. Bring whatever pokémon or weapons you need, and come alone, but it won't matter anyways because I am going to kill you, and your friends should you decide to bring them along (this does not include Misty).**

**PS: This message will self destruct**

"Huh?" Ash stared at the last part

**BOOOM!**

"WAAA!" Ash shouted when letter bomb exploded. "Waaaaaa…" he lay on the ground, "Ouch… I guess he wasn't happy about me taking his money. I should've done that when I OFFICIALLY beat him. Waaaaaa…"

(Location- Ebi's Place)

"Yow! OW! OWWWW!" Ash yelled

"Quit whining!" Misty tied a bandage on his arm, a little too tightly. He was struggling so much that Bayleef had to restrain him with the vines. "I'm trying to help you! And this is also practice for me when I become a doctor in the future!"

"Well doctors usually practice on cadavers!" Ash spoke through clenched teeth

"If you don't stop whining, I WILL be practicing on a cadaver" Misty said threateningly, shutting Ash up. Misty reached the end of the bandage on Ash's arm, and in order to tighten it, she put her foot on Ash's arm, grabbed the bandage with both hands, and gave it a GOOOOOD yank. (OO) Ash's eyes opened wide from that last bit. He didn't make a sound, but inside, he was screaming.

"There! All better!" Misty clapped her hands and slapped Ash on the back reassuringly. "I guess by NOW you'll learn to not train your pokémon using pester balls!"

As soon as she left, Ash fell to the floor on his back (××). The torturing session was over. "Even Melanie was a great healer, but she didn't make the cut because she wasn't a Nurse Joy." Said Ash, "Now in Misty's case, next time I'm injured, I'll try and strangle myself to death. That'll be much gentler…" Ash groaned

Ebi walked into the room and looked at him. "Um, Ash…" he sweatdropped, "Next time you're mortally injured, you come to ME and medical help." He held up a large tomato, "This is a Maximum Tomato! The VERY same they use in Kirby games, as well as the Smash Bros. Tournaments! Because I was an employee there, I…"

"Ebi, shut up and give me the tomato."

(A few minutes later)

"GRRR!" Ash ripped the bandages off his arm and sighed in relief of getting those things off. If he left them on any longer, he would have gotten gangrene. "Ah," he wiggled his fingers, allowing the circulation to pass through. He was still sore, but any cuts, bruises or burns have been healed. "Man, those Maximum Tomatoes sure come in handy! Hey Ebi, do you think I could put some in the Quick…"

"No!" Ebi snapped at him. "Just because I help you a bit doesn't mean I'll give you everything for free! Those things are really rare, and if you want them, it's gonna cost ya…"

"Never mind!" Ash interrupted him. Pikachu closed his eyes and sighed. As Misty opened the door and walked out, Ash got up and followed her. "Hmmm… should I tell her about Aquamarine? When I opened that letter bomb, for a split second, I saw a letter that said to come ALONE. Should I go by myself?" Ash remembered what Misty told him about going out and doing stupid things, a few chapters back when they were in Scarlet City.

_Ash rubbed the back of his head "Well, I may have a few bruises, but I'm fine! During the past few years, I've been zapped, scorched, drowned, whipped, frozen, fallen over a cliff, and bashed up big time, each on more than one occasion! I'm alive, and unharmed! What more could you want?"_

_Misty slapped him in the face, and glared at him, her face was red and burning with anger, and there was a small tear in the corner of her eye, "You can start by not being so stupid!" With that, she stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her._

"Ouch!" Ash thought to himself, "No, she doesn't NEED to know. And I think she'd be MUCH happier not knowing about this. The same thing as me having enough money to get her a FERRARI instead of some ratty old bike…" He thought to himself. He didn't know HOW strong Aquamarine is, but he'd have to prepare for this match…

(Location- Green Forest Lake)

The night has passed quicker than Ash would've wanted. After that bombing he got from Aquamarine, he just didn't feel AS confident about beating up Aquamarine. It was around 6:00 in the morning, and Misty, Brock and Ebi were asleep and wouldn't know he was missing. Although the QuickSilver was a pretty good weapon for fighting, it wouldn't be that strong against a spear. While Misty was asleep, Ash left her mallet, but took the bigger badder sledgehammer. She wouldn't notice, because she's always using the mallet anyways…

"Are you ready Pikachu? You and Bayleef are our main fighters in this match," Ash asked Pikachu

"Pika!" Pikachu answered

"Good…" Ash said. Suddenly, he sensed something… _DANGER!_

"JAVELIN RAIN!" Aquamarine yelled

"WA!" Ash dove out of the way of the javelins

"So you've FINNALY arrived!" Aquamarine stepped out of the trees and smirked

**WHACK!**

"OW!" Aquamarine fell on his back when Ash bashed his head with the sledgehammer

"Again with the spears! Will you QUIT trying to hit me with these things?!" Ash yelled, and then pulled up the QuickSilver and blocked when Aquamarine shot that harpoon from the gun.

"NO!" Aquamarine pressed a button on the gun that reeled in the harpoon, "This is a serious match!"

"Whaddaya mean?" Ash crossed his arms

"This isn't just ANY match you know!" Aquamarine yelled, "This is not about me, it's about MISTY!"

"What does this has to do with her?" Ash yelled

"EVERYTHING!" Aquamarine yelled and dashed towards Ash with his trident.

"WAAA!" Ash jumped out of the way. Aquamarine missed and got his trident stuck in a tree. Ash growled, grabbed onto Aquamarine's hair and smacked his face into the trunk. "Hey! What is this? I thought this was supposed to be a pokémon battle!"

"GRRR! Well you obviously were expecting something other than a pokémon match, seeing how you brought that sledgehammer along! What's the matter? Too scared to fight in a Rupture match? HAAAAAA…" Aquamarine growled

"Rupture what?" Ash wondered, but Aquamarine broke his train of thoughts

"TIDAL SPEAR! HAA!" Aquamarine yanked the trident out of the tree trunk and slashed. Even though it didn't hit Ash directly, it left a blue trail of energy, and the shockwave it sent through the air was enough to send him flying and hitting the ground with a loud thud.

"OWW!" Ash got up. Pikachu stood on all fours and his cheeks were sparking.

"You act that way around Misty, it's unforgivable! She deserves better than you! HARPOON STRIKE!" Aquamarine yelled and fired the harpoon from the gun, Ash tilted his head to the side, missing it

"Deserves better? What are you talking about!?" Ash yelled, attaching the QuickSilver to his right arm in the weapon/shield mode and holding the sledgehammer with both hands, "Deserves someone with a big mouth, full of hot air and such lousy aim? Yeah right!"

"This isn't gonna be a measly pokémon battle who decides who's better with pokémon!" Aquamarine yelled and pulled out the trident, "This battle is far more important! This one will determine WHICH one of us is worthy of Misty's feelings!"

"Will you quit it with the babbling long enough to give me a STRAIGHT explanation!?" Ash shouted

"We're both similar, we're both powerful trainers, we're both strong fighters, and we both want Misty!" Aquamarine tightened his grip on the trident, "Now this is a test of skills, strength, and who's worthier of her hand!"

"WHAT?!" Ash's face went red, with both embarrassment and rage, "Oh shut up and let's battle! Pikachu, attack!" Ash told Pikachu, "Whatever this jerk is talking about, I want to beat some sense into him!"

"ASH KETCHUM! If you're truly worthy of her, then you'd be able to beat me!" Aquamarine yelled, "Prepare to lose! Ogopogo, I CHOOSE YOU!"

"GROOOOOOAAAAR!" A powerful Gyarados appeared and swung its gigantic tail.

"WAAAA!"

"PIKAAA!"

Ash and Pikachu jumped out of the way. The tail missed them, but smashed several trees to pieces.

"Stupid jerk! You're only supposed to try to injure my pokémon!" Ash yelled

"PIKA!" Right when he heard Ash say that, Pikachu attacked Ash with lightning

"WAAA! That's not what I meant Pikachu… LOOK OUT!" Ash grabbed Pikachu by the tail and pulled him out of the way of the Hydro Pump. "Whoa, sorry about the rough treatment"

"Pika…" Pikachu sighed as he hung upside-down. As uncomfortable as this was, it was better than being hit by a blast of water as strong as a cannon

"I think I'll use a different pokémon! Bayleef! Use Razor Leaf!" Ash released Bayleef

"BAYYYY BAAAAAAY!" Bayleef fired several razor sharp leaves at Gyarados, but they just bounced right off.

"WHAT?!" Ash looked at Ogopogo. It seemed like a normal Gyarados, then he noticed something. Along his long body, he was wearing some sort of silver armour, and a spiked helm was covering his head. "You're giving pokémon weapons and armour! That's cheating!"

"I said this was more than a measly pokémon battle! This is a full fledged 'RUPTURE BATTLE', and absolutely anything goes! Super Fiends just don't get paid enough, and buying that armour put a HUGE dent in my account"

"You're a super fiend?!" Ash tightened his grip on the heavy hammer, "So the Missingno guys have finally sent in another one!"

"Lots of super fiends may work for the Missingno gang, but I'm not one of them!"

"Wa?"

"You see…" Aquamarine explained, "The super fiends are like a brotherhood, but we have lives of our own! Lots of us were trained fighters and worked as mercenaries, but I never worked as one, and I don't plan to work for that band of weaklings! But I am not fighting you as a super fiend, I am fighting as Misty's lover! Even if you were to beat me to a bloody pulp (yeah, I'd like to see you try that) I will not let you win!" Aquamarine returned to the battle, "Ogopogo, DRAGON RAGE!"

"ROOOAAR!" Ogopogo roared and fired a blast of fiery energy at Bayleef. Bayleef got hurt and collapsed…

"DAMN! With that armour, the Gyarados is tough!" Ash said to himself, "Hmm… Maybe… Even though metal armour bay defend against grass type attacks, it gives an extra weakness!" Ash pointed towards Ogopogo, "Pikachu! I know the more power you put into the thunder, the less accurate it is, even with a move that inaccurate, the metal will surely attract lightning! THUNDER!" Ash yelled

"PI-KA-CHUUUU!"

"Ogopogo! Defend yourself from the lightning!" Aquamarine yelled

"ROOAAAR!" Ogopogo yelled and straightened up. The lightning hit him, but it didn't have ANY effect whatsoever.

"WHAT?!" Ash yelled

"I saw you do that HydroThunder attack, and with Ogopogo's Water and Flying traits, a critical hit from an electrical attack would do TWELVE times the damage! This special armour absorbs any types of electrical attacks harmlessly!" Aquamarine laughed "And that's not all! Now that the armour's electrically charged, if you so much as touch Ogopogo, you'll suffer the electrical energy of your own thunder attack! All right Ogopogo, use CRUNCH!"

Ash growled. He couldn't put any scratches on this armoured Gyarados! "Whatever! I had a backup plan anyways!" Ash laughed, "I saw this in a game where if you hit a berserk guys, they'll attack anyone near to them, friend or foe!" Ash yelled

"What are you talking about?"

"THIS!" Ash threw a TON of pester balls at Ogopogo. The purple gas was released, and the armoured Gyarados roared in fury. Ogopogo was thrashing about!

"GROAAAR!" Ogopogo turned to Aquamarine and in his berserk rage he attacked

"WHOA! YOW!" Aquamarine jumped high into the air as Ogopogo lunged forward and attempted to bite him, "OGOPOGO, RETURN!" Aquamarine called Ogopogo into a pokéball, dropped to his knees and sighed. Growling, he turned to Ash, "HARPOON STRIKE!" he fired the harpoon from his gun.

"WA!" Ash held up his right arm quickly. Sparks flew when Ash deflected it. Ash growled, he was lucky to have that shield thing, especially when fighting a crazed psycho with a lot of weapons. This wasn't a situation to be taken lightly. "Oh so that's how you wanna play it, huh?!"

"YEAH!" Aquamarine pulled out the trident and charged towards Ash

"Do nothing Pikachu!" Ash told Pikachu, "I wanna fight this freak myself!" Ash started running towards Pikachu, "As much as I hate fistfights, the only thing I enjoy more than a pokémon battle is to beat the living HELL out of a jerk like him!" The QuickSilver was attached to his right arm, and he was whirling the sledgehammer over his head with both hands. Even though he had some pretty good weapons, the outcome of this match determined on how hard either of them would fight. This wasn't gonna be easy…

Aquamarine leapt into the air and dove down with the trident towards Ash, "PREPARE YOURSELF! ASH KETCHUM! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!"

"COME ON!" Ash yelled. He stood ready as Aquamarine sped towards him…

_It's Ash Vs. Aquamarine! Aquamarine is hoping to defeat Ash, and be the only one for Misty and win her heart! Will Ash just LET him win? No way, but Aquamarine is ready to kill, and would Ash stand a chance against this powerful fighter? Find out next time on PUA!_

(TO BE CONTINUED)


	11. TERROR OF THE DEEP!

Chapter 11- TERROR OF THE DEEP!

(Location- Green Forest Lake)

"WA! YOW! THAT-COULDA HURT!" Ash yelled as he dodged Aquamarine. Aquamarine missed, and his trident got stuck in the ground.

**POW!**

"AAAH!" Aquamarine fell over when Ash punched him with the QuickSilver arm

"Come on! You wanna keep going and let me pound you?"

"GRRRR…" Aquamarine rubbed the side of his face and growled. He then jumped high into the air, and aimed his trident down at Ash "HAAAA… OCEAN LANCE!" He jabbed through the air, and the air pressure sent Ash flying

"WA!"

"HEH-HEH!" Aquamarine laughed, "HAAAAA… TIDAL SPEAR!" He slashed through the air and send a blue shockwave, also sending Ash flying

"Ungh…!" Ash rubbed his head. "(_This is bad. That hurt a lot more than anything Doppelganger did…_) AH!" He snapped back to attention and ran behind a tree "And just how many of THOSE things does he have?" Ash hid behind the tree as the javelins hit. Ash looked to see if he was still throwing, "WA!" Ash went back into cover as more flew.

"Phew…" Aquamarine sighed. He was out of javelins. "Kraken, I choose you!"

"TENTACRUEEEL!" Kraken attacked! But this time, the end of the tentacles, there were heavy bronze spearheads.

"Attack!" Aquamarine pointed at Ash

"WAA!"

"PIKA!"

Ash and Pikachu both ran from the killing machine. With those sharp blades and spiked attached to Kraken's many arms, they wouldn't stand a chance. But if someone as resistant as ASH couldn't survive, then surely Aquamarine couldn't either… "PESTER BALLS, GO!" Ash threw a ton of pester balls at the Kraken. The foul gas went into his face. Howling out loud, the person began to flail wildly in rage, making no distinction between friend or foe it lashed at whoever was closest, in this case, it was Aquamarine!

"KRAKEN, RETURN!" before Kraken did any damage, Aquamarine called it into the pokéball before it could attack, "(_DAMN! If I use a pokémon, then this he'll just make them go crazy attack me when he uses that many pester balls! And that means I can't use my PRIZEFIGHTER, especially with the blades and spikes I gave him! Only one thing left to do is ATTACK HIM MYSELF!!!_) DEEP SKEWER!"

Ash jumped out of the way, "Man, that was pathetic! You keep using the same move all the time, and after that much, it isn't even enough to make me say 'wa'!" Ash glared at him, "Hmmm… You say this is an anything goes match, and you can't use any pokémon 'cuz I make 'em go berserk, but I on the other hand…" Ash turned to Pikachu, "THUNDER!"

"PIKA-CHUUU!" Pikachu jumped high into the air, and a large bolt of lightning came down.

"HMM!" Aquamarine held the Trident up high. The lightning immediately went into the weapon, but Aquamarine was unharmed. "HA! I've learned from my many battles over the years and this weapon's made of the same thing the armour is made of! And for lightning attacks, this means… YAAA!" Aquamarine dashed forwards and swung it through the air, and as it flew, a trail of electricity could be seen.

"WAA!"

"PIKAA!"

Ash and Pikachu ran as fast as they could, while Aquamarine was following closely, swinging that electrically charged weapon through the air. "COME BACK SO I COULD KILL YOU, ASH KETCHUM!"

"I'VE-GOT-TO-FIGURE-OUT-A-WAY-TO-STOP-THIS-MANIAC!" Ash yelled and sweatdropped. "(_GRRR!!! The lightning flowing through that weapon, it's no stronger than the ones Pikachu usually uses on me. I know I could survive it, but those sharp edges…_)" Ash looked at the trident. "(_I've got to be careful. If that trident touches my skin, even a little bit, I'll get shocked! And chances are he'll take that chance to skewer me!_)" Ash growled, "(_There's no way I can avoid it forever! I'll have to take that shock, while keeping him from hitting me!_)" Ash turned around.

"DIE KETCHUM!" Aquamarine jabbed the trident to Ash

"HAAA!" With one arm, Ash blocked the hit, and with his other arm, he swung the sledgehammer and bashed Aquamarine on the forehead.

"WAAAA!" Both Ash and Aquamarine screamed and fell over. A bit of one of the prongs touches the skin on Ash's arm and the electricity passed on completely to Ash, while Aquamarine was dazed from that blow to the head from the big hammer.

"Hey Aqua? Please, let's not do that one again" Ash groaned

"Trust me, the feeling's mutual" Aquamarine groaned

"Truce for five minutes?" Ash asked

"Truce" Aquamarine reached and shook Ash's hand

(Five Minutes later)

**BAM!**

Ash punched Aquamarine with the QuickSilver arm.

"OW!" Aquamarine rubbed his face. As Ash dashed towards him, Aquamarine tightened his grip on the trident "TIDAL SPEAR! HAAA!" Aquamarine swung the trident. The air pressure sent Ash and Pikachu flying through the air and crashing into a tree.

"HM!" Aquamarine growled, "You coward! Stand up and fight!"

"Urgh…" Ash groaned, rubbing his jaw, "Did he just get stronger?!"

"RHAAAA!" Aquamarine roared, turning his whole body and stabbing with the trident

"GRA!!" Ash growled, catching the prongs of the trident in his hands, and stopping it, "GRRR…" he growled… Aquamarine put so much force into the stab, Ash was being pushed back. But still, he was slowing Aquamarine down… "THUNDER!!!!"

"PIKA! PIIII…" Pikachu seemed to be focusing very hard on an attack, "PIKACHUUU!"

"Heh…" Aquamarine smirked. "Don't underestimate me. RHAAA!!!"

"WA?!" Ash exclaimed. Aquamarine lifted the trident into the air, with Ash still hanging onto the end! But that wasn't all! "AAAAHHH!!!" Ash screamed when Pikachu's thunder attack crashed into him

"I'M NOT DONE YET! OCEAN LANCE!" energy gathered in Aquamarine's trident…

**CRASH!!!**

"AAAAHHHH!!!!" Ash screamed when a blast of energy sent him flying, and hitting the ground. "Ungh… angh!!!" Ash gasped. His stomach was in so much pain, there was a bit of smoke coming from his clothes. That attack… it was so powerful! "Agh…" he struggled to get up. It hurt so much… but he clenched his teeth, he refused to quit! "P-pikachu…" he breathed, "SKULL BASH!!!!"

"PIKA!!!" Pikachu shot forwards, spinning through the air towards Aquamarine…

"HMM!" Aquamarine swerved his body, to avoid the attack, "Heh!" he laughed, turning around as Ash came charging at him "HA!!!" he slammed Ash across the face, knocking him back, "What an amateurish trick!" he shouted. "Sending your pokémon to distract me while you attack?! Even if you did hit me, WHAT DO YOU THINK THAT'LL DO?!" He roared, smashing Ash and sending him flying

"ANGH…" Ash hit the ground hard. "Ugh… GRRR…" he growled, standing up, "I won't…" he panted, clenching his knuckles… "I WON'T QUIT!!!" he tried to hit him but Aquamarine simply caught Ash's punch and twisted his arm, "AH!" holding Ash's arm, Aquamarine swung him over his head and slammed him against the forest floor, "Grrr…!" Ash refused to stay down. "It's… it's not over yet…" he gasped, slowly standing up. He refused to stay down. Though he was in pain, his muscles were on fire, his body was screaming for him to quit, Ash simply refused to stop fighting. He just kept going…! "RHAAA!!!!"

"HMMM!!!" Aquamarine stepped to the side and thrust his trident forwards. Catching Ash's arms between the prongs, he twisted hard and threw him off balance. As Ash stumbled, Aquamarine took that chance to attack, "DADADADADA!!!!!" he roared, attacking him repeatedly with his fists, slamming into his face, neck, head and stomach, "HM…" he stopped punching and turned around, "HAAA!!!" he kicked Ash in the stomach and sent him reeling back, but Aquamarine's hand shot forward and grabbed him by the top of his head. "HAAAA!!!!" He shouted

**SMASH!!!**

Aquamarine smashed Ash's face right into the ground. As his face hit the floor, he didn't even have the strength left to scream. Aquamarine let him go and took a step back, leaving Ash lying there. "Ngh…" a few tears escaped his eyes. Ash tried to move, but he couldn't. His body, it just wasn't responding to his commands… "N… no…" he cried. Aquamarine… there was such a huge gap between them. He was nothing like Doppelganger. None of Ash's attacks seemed to make any difference, while every one of HIS attacks tore right into him! How is it possible… how could anyone be this strong?!

"So he's got nothing left, huh?" said Aquamarine. "Fine then, I'll finish you off right now." As he held up his trident, Pikachu ran in front of Ash, blocking Aquamarine's way. "Hmph… out of the way." he said, but Pikachu growled, his cheeks sparking. "You were warned…" he held up his trident, "DEEP SKEWER!!!"

"NO!" Ash's hand shot up, and grabbed the trident, stopping it

"So you still got some fight left, huh?" Aquamarine smirked, "Even after all that, you still refuse to die. I don't think there's anything I can do that'll keep you down" he then glared at him, "Which is why I'm taking this battle elsewhere…"

"Hmm?" Ash stared up at him, as Aquamarine closed his eyes, "Grr… he's doing another attack!" he exclaimed, "RHAA!" Ash shouted, punching him again and again, trying to stop him

"PIKACHUUU!!!" Pikachu roared, also striking Aquamarine with his lighting…

"HM! RHA!" Aquamarine's eyes shot open, he was completely unphased by Ash and Pikachu's hits, "TIDAL SPEAR!" Aquamarine swing his trident…

**SMASH!!!!**

"AAAAAHHHH!!!!!" Ash and Pikachu screamed as they were sent flying…

**SPLASH!**

"AGH!" Ash exclaimed when he landed in water. "Ungh…!" he shook his head, and blinked. The cold water was really soothing, and eased the pain. As he stood up, he realized the water was pretty shallow, barely reaching his shins "Pikachu?" he asked, picking up his friend, "Are you okay?"

"Pika…" Pikachu growled, but nodded

"Aquamarine, you dirty son of a…" Ash growled, but then gasped. He could see Aquamarine approaching them, knee-deep in water. "GRR…" Ash growled and stood up and took a fighting stance, "Pikachu! Use…"

"I wouldn't do that" said Aquamarine, looking down. "We're knee deep in water, and any thunder attacks you do will result in both of us getting hurt"

"Why you… WA!!!" Ash exclaimed as Aquamarine thrust his trident forwards. Ash fell back, nearly missing it.

"I got you!" Aquamarine shouted, stabbing down…

"PIKA!" Pikachu shot through the air and slammed against him with skull bash

"GRR!" As Aquamarine stumbled from Pikachu's attack, Ash quickly stood up, "HA!"

**THUD!**

"Hm…" Aquamarine didn't show any reaction when Ash punched him across the face. "Was that supposed to hurt?" he smirked, "THIS IS A REAL PUNCH!"

**SMACK!!!!**

"AAAGGGHHH!" Ash screamed as spun from Aquamarine's punch and fell face down into the water. "Heh-heh…" he laughed weakly

"And what's so funny?" asked Aquamarine

"When you punched me, you should've been paying attention to where my hand was reaching!" Ash held up an empty pokéball… "CRUNCH!"

"HUH!?" Aquamarine exclaimed and turned around, seeing Totodile leap out of the water at him… instinctively he he raised his arms in defence… "AAARGH!" he screamed when Totodile bit into his wrist on his right arm!

"AN OPENING!" Ash shouted. With his right armoured fist, he slammed Aquamarine across the face with all his strength, causing him to stumble back.

"WHY YOU!" Aquamarine roared, straightening up and slamming Ash. "TIDAL SPEAR!" he shouted, swinging the trident with his left arm. The shockwave sent Ash, Pikachu and Totodile flying back and landing in the water with a splash

"Heh…" Ash laughed, standing up. "What's the matter Aquamarine? You're getting slow all of the sudden" he smirked, "And that attack didn't hurt"

"Grrr…" Aquamarine growled. Ash was right. That attack was much weaker than it should have been. It was because he was only using one hand…

"HAAA!!!" Ash, Pikachu and Totodile charged towards towards Aquamarine

"HM!" Aquamarine dodged left and right, evading them "HA!" he punched Ash with his left fist, and spun around, slamming him with his right elbow, knocking him back. As Pikachu shot forwards with Quick Attack, Aquamarine moved his body and grabbed him by the tail, swinging him and slamming him into Totodile, throwing them both back. "NGH!" he exclaimed when Ash's fist hit him and Pikachu slammed into his stomach. Looking up, he saw Totodile jump up, ready to bite him again…

**CHOMP!**

"Heh…" Aquamarine smirked, he held up the harpoon gun just in time, and Totodile bit into the weapon first. "RHA!" he spun around and slammed it against Ash, causing the trainer to fall back and Totodile to let go. As Pikachu leapt up, Aquamarine's hand shot up and grabbed him. "Agh!" he exclaimed when Pikachu bit his hand! "GRRR… ENOUGH!!!!" he roared, throwing Pikachu

"(Pant…) this is… (pant…) too much" Ash and his two pokémon were gasping for air. Aquamarine just wouldn't stop. Even with the handicap, he was too strong. There's was no way Ash could win… "HA!" flung the sledgehammer into Aquamarine's face.

"AGH!" Aquamarine fell over

"TOTODILE RETURN!" Ash shouted, also removing QuickSilver and throwing it down. He grabbed Pikachu and sped off "DAMMITIHATERUNNINGAWAYFROMBATTLES!" He yelled as he sped off. Ash couldn't win. He'd have to come back and fight him when he had a strategy to beat this crazed maniac.

"AND WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING?!" Aquamarine's voice echoed. Ash yelled out the super speed words and sped off even faster. "THERE'S NO RUNNING AWAY FROM THIS BATTLE!" Aquamarine turned the point of his trident downwards and struck into the water. "HAAAA…" he was focusing hard. The winds started to blow faster, the waves splashed and grew. The sky started to grow dark and fog swirled around him. Aquamarine pulled it out of the ground and pointed it into the direction Ash was going. "YOU'RE NOT GOING ANYWHERE! BLACK SQUALL!!!" The winds, black clouds and deep mist left the area, and were flying straight to Ash.

"COME ON QUICKSILVER! YOU CAN DO IT!" Ash looked back, he could see the fog catching up to him. "FASTER!" No matter what he did… it wasn't enough. "WAAA!" the QuickSilver halted and spun in the violent winds. "NOOO!" The winds blew him back to the battlefield. Ash hit the ground and blacked out…

(Up in the trees)

"I can't believe it! The twerp's losing!" Jessie gasped

"Um, Jessie? Who are we rooting for? The twerp is our archenemy, but the water guy's a powerful bad guy and a greater evil! Normally, this is where we jump in and support one side" James asked

"I don't think we want to get involved" Meowth sweatdropped

"Agreed" said Jessie and James

(Location- Battlegrounds)

"Ugh… what was… what was that…?" Ash groaned

"So, did you enjoy my attack?" Ash looked up and saw Aquamarine standing. Aquamarine laughed, "And would you believe that wasn't my strongest attack?"

Ash growled, "THAT'S IT! I AM THROUGH WITH THIS!" Ash pulled out his pokéballs, "You may not be able to use pokémon, but I am! I got so caught up in this whole fighting thing that I forgot what I really am, a pokémon trainer! EVERYBODY, GO!" Ash threw all his pokéballs, and out came his full team: Pikachu, Cyndaquil, Bayleef, Totodile, Noctowl and Snorlax. "The guy's strong in the arms, but weak in the head! Noctowl, use hypnosis!"

Before Aquamarine could react, Noctowl cooed and used the attack. Aquamarine started to feel dizzy…

"SNORLAX! MEGA PUNCH"

"LAX!" Snorlax charged forwards and slammed Aquamarine with his fists and sent him flying and hitting the ground.

"All right! HYDROTHUNDER!" Ash yelled. Totodile fired a jet of water and Pikachu electrified it.

"NO!" Aquamarine straightened up and blocked the attack with the trident. The trident absorbed every bit of the electricity, and the water alone couldn't hurt him. Ash could see the electric bolts sparking between the spearheads.

"As long as he's got that electrical trident, he's dangerous! Use flamethrower on it, Cyndaquil!"

"CYNDA!" Cyndaquil fired hot flames at Aquamarine's weapon.

"Hey! What do you think you're…? OW!" Aquamarine dropped the red-hot trident.

"He's disarmed! All right Bayleef, Vine Whip!"

"BAY!" Bayleef smacked Aquamarine with his vines

"GRR!" Aquamarine kicked the trident and sent it back into the water, while he raised his arms and defended himself from the vines.

"WELL… looks like I'M winning!" Ash laughed.

"Don't think you've won yet!" Aquamarine dove towards snatched his trident which had now cooled off. Aquamarine threw the two pokéballs, "DIE KETCHUM! KRAKEN! OGOPOGO! I CHOOSE YOU!!"

"TENTACRUEL!" the large Tentacruel, Kraken yelled

"GROAAR!" The armoured Gyarados, Ogopogo roared

"All right guys! ATTACK!"

Ash laughed, "You made the wrong choice! Pester balls, G…"

"RAAR!" Ogopogo blasted the pester balls out of Ash's hand

"YOW!" Ash exclaimed when they went flying, "Why you…" he reached for the QuickSilver, trying to grab more Pester Balls…

"YOU SHOULD FOCUS MORE ON THE BATTLE!" Aquamarine jumped forwards and kicked the QuickSilver out of Ash's hands, "YOU'RE WAY OUT OF YOUR LEAGUE!" he slammed Ash to the ground and turned around, "KRAKEN! POISON STING!"

Kraken lunged and attempted to poison Ash with his stingers, but Snorlax jumped up and tackled him hard, Kraken growled and attacked with the sharp spearheads on his tentacles. They did about as much damage as a bee sting to Snorlax and only made him madder.

"GROAAAR!" Ogopogo dove and was ready to bite Snorlax with Crunch.

"SNOOOOOORE…" Snorlax gripped all of the tentacles in one place and spun quickly, swinging Kraken through the air. "LAX!" He let go and Kraken went flying through the air, crashing into Ogopogo. Ogopogo was relatively fine because of the armour, but the giant Tentacruel wasn't armoured and went down. Kraken was defeated!

"No! Kraken!" Aquamarine exclaimed

"Tentacruel's down! Now dog pile on Gyarados! HYDROTHUNDER!"

"TOTODIIILE!"

"PIKACHUUUU!"

The electrified water hit Ogopogo, but it didn't do any damage. "No go! Water doesn't hurt water pokémon and the armour protects it from elements!" Ash said to himself, "BUUUUUUT…" He grinned, "The armour may be able to withstand it, but is the pokémon?"

"SNOOOOOORE…" Snorlax opened his mouth and concentrated his energy into a single beam, a Hyper Beam that is… "LAAAAAX!"

**CRASH!**

The beam slammed Ogopogo and smashed right through the armour. The blow to the head was too strong. Ogopogo got hurt and collapsed…

"NO! OGOPOGO!"

"HA-HAAA! I guess neither the armour or the pokémon could take it!"

"That does it!" Aquamarine pulled out a pokéball. "Time to use my prizefighter! LEVIATHAN! I CHOOSE YOU!"

"FERALIGATOOOOOR!" Leviathan growled.

"A Feraligator? So THIS is your prizefighter!" Ash smiled and pulled out some pester-balls. "He looks really strong, and I'd love to battle him" Ash looked at the armoured pokémon. This one was given golden armour, around the torso and legs. It had blades running down the back of its head to the end of the golden armoured tail. It was also given golden gauntlets with war talons on the end of the fingers, spikes on the knuckles and a large blade on each arm. There was also protection for the head, shielding the top of the head, the sides of the face and the jaw. "You sure invest a lot in weapons for your pokémon! How much did it cost for the gold armour?"

"Nothing! I made the armour myself! It was getting the gold to make it and mixing it with another substance to make an elementally and high impact resistant alloy, that was the tough part."

"Let's see how strong he is! Everybody, ATTACK!" Ash commanded his pokémon

"LEVIATHAN! USE HYDRO PUMP!" Aquamarine yelled. Feraligator opened his mouth and fired a powerful jet of water at Ash and his pokémon

"WA"

"PIKA!"

"TOTO!"

"BAYLEEEF!"

"TROOOOWL!" Noctowl was hit

"Lax?" Snorlax was hit, but the water DIDN'T even make him budge

"Leviathan was my loyal partner and friend since the beginning, and he will not let himself be defeated by anyone! Leviathan, SLASH!"

"GATOR!" Leviathan ran forwards and slashed Snorlax with his claws.

"SNOOOR-LAAX!" Snorlax roared out and grabbed Leviathan by the neck. With his size and large amount of HP, the gash Leviathan left on him was a small wound and wasn't too serious, but with the war talons put on Feraligator's fingers, it made the slash the same strength as a level 100 pokémon, and it hurt and REALLY made him mad. Snorlax pounded on the side of Leviathan's face, again, again, this was doing damage. "SNORLAX!" Snorlax punched again, but Leviathan growled and caught the punch in his hand.

"TOOOOOR!" Leviathan roared and slashed Snorlax in the face. Snorlax let go of Leviathan's neck and covered his face with his hands. Leviathan was still good, the face plate protected his head and jaws from elements and impacts.

"PIKA!"

"DIILE!"

Pikachu and Totodile used the HydroThunder attack. The electrified water hit his armoured back. The armour may have made him immune to the electricity, but the impact and force of the water made him stumble forwards, which gave the other's the opening they needed.

"Bay BAAAAAAAY!" Bayleef jumped forwards and whipped Leviathan with the vines.

"NOCTOWL!" Noctowl fired a Psybeam and hit the face, weakening it even more

"PIKA!" Pikachu launched himself through the air and crashed head first into the side of Leviathan's face. Leviathan tripped and fell over as Pikachu fell to the ground. "PIKAAAA…" Pikachu groaned, lying on the ground. He should've attacked with his tail against a heavily armoured head.

"FERALIGATOOR!" Leviathan spun and slammed all of Ash's pokémon with his tail, sending them flying in different directions. He then charged forwards and tackled Snorlax (Thankfully for HIM, there were no spikes or blades on the shoulders and head)

"That's some nice fighting Leviathan!" Aquamarine laughed, but then looked at Ash. "Hey, what are you smiling at?"

"Heh, look what I got right here!" Ash held up the QuickSilver. Reaching in, he grabbed a handful of Pester Balls, "GOOOO!" he threw them at Leviathan, hitting him and releasing the foul gas. "Feraligators have high temper, and THIS'LL set it off!"

"You're an even bigger idiot than I thought!" Aquamarine yelled, "Those things don't make the pokémon turn on their owners! Do you even know the definition of the word berserk?!"

"TOOOR!" Leviathan roared and attacked. It didn't matter who it hit, it just attacked anything left and right

"BAYLEEEF!" Bayleef got hurt and collapsed…

"TOOOOWL!" Noctowl fainted!

"HAHAHA!" Aquamarine laughed

"Go ahead and laugh it up!" Ash pointed at Aquamarine "Bayleef! Noctowl! RETURN!" Ash called them back into their pokéballs and switched them for two others via white button on pokédex. "Now, I need muscle! If I had Primeape, I'd use him, but here's a powerhouse and a veteran! Tauros! Kingler! I CHOOSE YOU!"

"TAUUU!" Tauros stamped the ground and lowered his head, getting ready to charge at Leviathan

"CO-KING!" Kingler clapped his pincers and aimed the large one threateningly at the Feraligator

"Don't do anything!" Ash told Pikachu, Totodile and Cyndaquil, "Let the powerhouses to the work until I give you the instructions! Surround him and attack!"

"SNORE!"

"TAU!"

"KING!"

**BAM!**

Snorlax uppercutted Leviathan, making him stumble back a few steps.

**CLANG!**

Tauros kicked Leviathan on the back with his front hooves

**SMACK!**

Kingler sprung up and smacked Leviathan on the side of the face with his gigantic claw. After that round of attacks, the armour was chipped and cracked, while the helmet protecting Leviathan's face fell off.

"The face is vulnerable! Pikachu! SKULL BASH!" Ash commanded

"PIKAAAAA…" Pikachu focused hard… "Pika!" Pikachu launched through the air and bashed Leviathan on the side of the head.

"Totodile! SLASH!"

"TO-TO!" Totodile jumped up and slashed Feraligator across the face

"CO-KING!" Kingler struck his claw into back of the body armour. "COOOOO…" Kingler's claw pierced it and with all his might, his claw clamped shut and cut the armour on the back

Tauros charged forwards and slammed into Leviathan. From that last hit, the body armour broke completely and fell to the ground.

"NO! Not the body armour! ANYTHING but the body armour!" Aquamarine shouted, "ARGH! This isn't over yet! Even with the defence add-ons gone, he still has the talons and arm-blades!"

"Maybe! But I'm not even gonna give him the CHANCE to use them!" Ash laughed "Snorlax! Pikachu! Drive him into the trees!"

"PIKAAAAAAAA…" Pikachu focused hard on his attack… "PIKA!" Pikachu launched off the ground and hit Aquamarine and sent him flying into the thick woods.

"SNORE! LAX!" Snorlax mega-punched Leviathan as hard as he could, which sent him crashing into the woods along with Aquamarine. Leviathan, with his size, several trees cracked and fell onto them

"All right! STEP TWO! Cyndaquil, use fire spin! Don't focus on strength, focus on area!" Cyndaquil blew fire and set the trees and bushes and the undergrowth on fire.

"GYAAA!" Aquamarine ran out and started rolling on the ground in an attempt to get rid of the flames over his body. "YOU JERK! THAT COULDA KILLED ME!"

**CRASH!**

"GAATROOOOAAAR!" Leviathan burst out of the flaming heap of fallen trees. Thankfully he was a water type and resistant to fire damage, but he was still vulnerable, and the flames left heavy burns that made it painful to move. Leviathan roared and charged at Snorlax, attacking him, but Pikachu struck with a thunderbolt

"Nice thunderbolt Pikachu!" Ash cheered "Don't give him a chance to do any of the special attacks! He's burned, and without the armour… HYDROTHUNDER!"

"TOTODIIIILE!"

"PIKACHUUU!"

Leviathan roared in pain as electricity surged through his body. He was paralyzed, burned and exhausted… he dropped to his knees. One good attack would take him down.

"FINISH HIM OFF PIKACHU!" Ash shouted. "THUNDER ATTACK!!!"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu's cheeks sparked and he released all of his electricity. Leviathan screamed as it surged through him. He could take no more, and collapsed…

"YES! I WIN!!!"

"(Sigh) Leviathan, return." Aquamarine called his prizefighter pokémon into the pokéball. "No… this is too much. Even against a pokémon powerful enough to take down 001's Tyranitar, or Lance the dragon trainer's strongest Dragonite, you were able to devise such tactics, to disarm my pokémon and defeat him. Maybe… maybe you are worthier of Misty than me…" he sighed. "Hmm… PWAH!" he suddenly spat, "LIKE HELL I'D EVER SAY THAT! I'M NOT DONE YET!!! PREPARE YOURSELF!!!"

"Hmmm!" Ash and his pokémon stood ready as Aquamarine grabbed his trident

"Grr….!" Aquamarine gritted his teeth as he gripped his trident, twirling it in front of him and taking a fighting stance, gripping it with both hands. It was extremely painful, because his wrist was injured, but he could bear it… "Hmmm…" closing his eyes, he held his trident tight, focusing hard. "Since before I left Cerulean city, I have been training to master this technique, one that requires the power of the body and soul…" A blue aura surrounded his body.

"A body and soul technique?!" Ash gasped. Suddenly, it dawned on him… he could sense it. DANGER!!! "A-ah…" Ash started to tremble. Aquamarine's power… he could feel it… it was tremendous! He looked at his pokémon. "Grrr…" Ash growled. Aquamarine's power… there was no attack he had… no, no attack in existence that could possible stand up it! "No… we won't run" Ash exclaimed, gripping his knuckles. He wasn't gonna back down. "We'll stand together, all for one!" he said, and his pokémon cheered, "We'll combine all our strengths, and beat this psycho!"

"PIKAAAAA…" Pikachu charged and powered up his attack

"CYN-DAAAAA…" Cyndaquil's flames burst and flared and he opened his mouth, preparing to fire the heavy blast in his flamethrower attack

"TOTO…" Totodile never learned how to do Hydro pump, so he'd have to focus all his energy into a water gun

"SNOOOOOORE…" Snorlax opened his mouth and concentrated his energy into a hyper beam

"TAAAUUU…" Tauros was gonna do a Hyper Beam attack

"COOO…" Kingler opened his claw. Totodile's already supplying the water for the attack, so he was gonna use hyper beam

"(_Merely attacking together won't be enough…_)" Ash said to himself. "(_What I'm about to try, is something no one's ever done before… to truly combine their strengths, to fully bind the elements, and merge them together…_)" he looked at his pokémon. "(_But what if it doesn't work? There's no way we'll survive Aquamarine's attack!_)" he growled, "(_No! I can't start thinking like that… I have to have faith in my pokémon… in their strength… in their abilities… I trust them…_)"

"You think you can win? I don't think so…" Aquamarine grinned, "You will be defeated by my attack! Your attack may be strong, but the power of mine outshines yours, and it doesn't come from strength alone! TERROR OF THE DEEP! HAAAA!" He struck the ground with his trident. Blue energy started to flame, and heading towards them, tearing through the ground was what appeared to be a crystal-blue dorsal fin. It rose out of the ground as it sped forwards, and Ash gasped at what he saw. It was a huge beam of energy, but the front was shaped as a shark's head with all the fins and gills and not to mention very sharp teeth…

"NOW! FIRE!" Ash ordered

"PIKAAA!"

"QUIIIIL!"

"DIIIIILE!"

"LAAAAX!"

"ROOOOS!"

"KIIIIING!"

The three hyper-beams soared through the air spiralling around each other. The force of the beams also carried the water, which was electrified by Pikachu's electricity. Spinning around the powerful beam was a wave of fire.

**CRASH!!!**

The mighty energy beam hit the terrifying terror of the deep.

"COME ON!" Ash shouted over the loud crashing noise. Both beams pushed against each other, everyone was trying to put more power into it, "HOW CAN ANY HUMAN BEING HAVE SO MUCH POWER!??!"

"HEH-HEH…" Aquamarine was sweating. He was emptying his energy into this single attack. "I WILL NOT LOSE! THE TERROR OF THE DEEP CANNOT BE DEFEATED! HHHAAAAAAAAAAA!"

While the powerful beam containing three hyper beams and a bit of each earthly element, it was still not enough. Against the power of this warrior, merely attacking together wasn't enough. The new attack was starting to fall apart…

"No! HOLD TOGETHER!" Ash shouted, but the beam was breaking "NOOO!" Ash screamed. It was too late… each element flew in each direction "WAAAA!"

**KABOOM!!!!**

Pikachu, Totodile, Cyndaquil, Tauros, Kingler and Snorlax got hurt and collapsed… and even though Ash wasn't hit directly by the Terror of the Deep beam, the explosion sent him flying.

Aquamarine panted, he had emptied most of his energy into this single beam, but it was worth it. Ash groaned and struggled to get up. The mere shock of the attack hit Ash hard. "So, looks like I win." Aquamarine jumped and kicked Ash on the face. Ash dropped to the ground and struggled to get up. "The last sight you will see will be me laughing in triumph before sending you to the graveyard…" Aquamarine swung the trident, but Ash managed to roll out of the way and get up. Aquamarine growled and continued to jab at him, but Ash kept moving from side to side. "You're still moving?! What do I have to do to take you down and make you STAY down?!"

"Like such a thing exists!" Ash spat, "WA!" he exclaimed, diving down and missing a thrust. "WAWAWAAA!" he ran back, still trying to keep away from that thing.

"DEEP SKEWER!" Aquamarine struck HARD with the trident, but Ash held the QuickSilver between his hands and blocked. Aquamarine twisted the trident hard and the board flew out of Ash's hands. "You're completely disarmed! I'm not gonna bother with the air pressure attack, I'm gonna do the direct hit! TIDAL SPEAR!"

"WAAA!" Ash ducked and his head barely missed the attack. The sheer force of it took his hat right off his head. Ash sprang up and made a dash to catch it, but Aquamarine jumped up

"DEEP SKEWER!" Aquamarine struck down with the powerful stab. He missed Ash, and his trident punched right into Ash's cap…

"AH!" Ash screamed

"GRRR… OCEAN LANCE!!!" Aquamarine roared…

**FWOOM!!!**

"AH…" Ash gasped, as Aquamarine's attack fired down from the trident, and Ash's rare and not to mention irreplaceable pokémon league cap exploded. Bits of cloth and shredded pieces of his cap in the air. He was completely speechless and stretched his hands out, letting a few bits of it fall into his hands. That cap took months and a ton of effort for him to receive, and right here, right now, in just a few seconds, it was nothing but worthless shreds…

"See what I did to you're cap? That's what's gonna happen to you when I hit you directly with the Terror of the Deep! Prepare to Die Ketchum! HAAAAA… URK!?" Aquamarine sweatdropped as Ash's hand shot forward and grabbed him by the neck. His other hand pulled the trident out of Aquamarine's hands, and snapped it in two.

"GRRRRRR…" Ash snarled, and a massive killer aura was surrounding him…

"GAH…!" Aquamarine trembled… "AGH!" he screamed when Ash then pulled his face close and head-butted him

"YOU BASTARD! THAT CAP WAS IRREPLACEABLE!!!" Ash was shouting, pounding Aquamarine's face with his other hand on each syllable

**POW!**

Aquamarine was sent flying high into the air when Ash uppercutted him. Aquamarine came crashing down, and out cold. "HMPH!" Ash kicked him, "If I were a senseless violent brute like Misty, I would've broken your arms and legs and made sure you'd stay a cripple the rest of your life, but I'm not that kind of person, lucky for you…" he scoffed, "However… don't think I'll let you go, just like that! You've hurt me very deeply just now and I'm gonna do something horrible! And I'm talking about more than taking your wallet! Speaking of which …" Ash reached into Aquamarine's pockets… "Sheesh, what kind of idiot writes down his bank account number and leaves it in his pockets?" He asked himself as he picked up the small piece of paper. "Payment for the cap…" he smirked, also picking up the golden body armour and helmet. "Now it's time to pay for giving me all that trouble"

(Several hours later)

"Owwww… What hit me?" Aquamarine woke up and rubbed his head. "Hmmm? What's that?" There was an envelope lying in front of him. He reached over and picked it up. "THIS LETTER! IT'S… FROM MISTY! I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!"

Aquamarine read the letter

_**To my dearest Aquamarine**_

_**From the moment I first met you, I knew you were the one. I have always loved you the way you have loved me. I have attached a map to where you can find me. I will wait for you forever…**_

_**From your darling love, Misty**_

"OH… MY… GOD!" Aquamarine exclaimed. He sprinted through the woods faster than Ash's QuickSilver could ever move.

(Location- Himalayas)

"(Pant…) Misty… for you I shall swim across the oceans, I'd cross the deserts, I would travel to the VERY end of the earth! (ironically, I seem to have done all that just now…)" Aquamarine pulled himself up on the last ledge of Mt. Everest. "Strange that she'd want to meet me at a place like this. So far away from civilization, or land for that matter… oh well, can't argue with her (Grunt)" He reached the summit, "Misty! Let us savour this beautiful moment and… Misty?" He climbed to the top of Everest and looked left and right. Misty was nowhere in sight (A/N: Well duh…) "Where are you?" He walked and looked around the corners, and it's very steep icy ledges "WAK!" He slipped… "(WHAM!) AAAGH! (SNAP!) MY LEG! (CRACK!) OWWWW! (BAM!) WHAAAA! (CRASH!) WHOOOOOOOAAA…" He rolled down the ledge and then flew into the air "(CRASH!) OOOOOOOOW!" he rubbed his head after he flew through the air and crashed into a wall…

**THUNK!**

"GAK!" A rock fell and hit him on his already-injured "Hmmm? What's this?" There was some writing engraved on the rock, along with a picture of Ash, who was pulling an eyelid down and sticking out his tongue

If you are reading this Aquamarine, YOU have been suckered by Ash Ketchum! HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHA!

"AH…" Aquamarine gasped. Veins became apparent on his forehead, and his eye started ticking, "Ash… Ketchum…" he twitched, gripping the rock so tight, he crushed it into dues, "GRRRRRRAAAAAHHHH!!!!!" He and roared, "ASH KETCHUM!!!!! I AM GOING TO KILL YOU!!!!!!"

**_KILL YOU! KILL YOU! KILL YOU…_** Aquamarine's voice echoed over the horizon.

(Location-Deeper in the Green Forest)

"So Aquamarine lost, didn't he?" Asked Goth

"Yeah!" Twin Dreamer shouted downwards. He had been watching the fight from the air and transmitting what he was seeing telepathically to the rest of the super fiends

"This is bad" Said Bonsai

"Real Bad" said Cleft

"If Ketchum could beat Aquamarine, how're we fiends supposed to stand up to him?" Asked AntiArctic

"We won't stand a chance. The kid's dangerous when someone makes him mad, and when Aqua destroyed his hat, he crossed the line!" G.I. Jolt crossed his arms, "Both of them did something to make him mad before fighting him! Doppelganger captured his girlfriend, and Waterboy ripped his hat to shreds, and NOW look what happens to them! How can any of us fight him without getting him mad?"

"There's no need to be worried about anything" Sky Render said rather calmly

"HUH?" All the super fiends stared at Sky

"Aquamarine is powerful, yes, but his rage was his downfall. Lashing out wildly as he did, his performance was absolutely sloppy… Aquamarine was more focused on tormenting his opponent than actually finishing him off above. Had it been otherwise, Ketchum would not be alive this second." Sky Render sighed, "Losing because he got so emotional… He will certainly be hearing from me later… after I am done with Ketchum that is…"

All the fiends were shocked, "You're… serious?" One of them asked

"Next time, I will fight him myself!" When they heard this, all the super fiends started chatting excited amongst themselves. Sky Render was more skilled than all of them combined, and watching him fight is a real treat. Sky Render smirked "And in other news, we're leaving the Missingno gang for good! They're too weak and being associated with them is bad for our image!"

"ALL RIGHT!" The Super fiends cheered, "So what are we waiting for? This is better than a party, 'cuz here we go!"

(Meanwhile)

"Urgh…" Aquamarine sighed, finally calming down. "No point sitting around any longer. I'd better get down from here… GAH?!" he looked down, he saw that one of his arms and BOTH his legs and were broken, and that he was sitting on a small ledge that stuck out of the mountain. He looked up and saw the wall was going at a 90o angle and was completely smooth, looking down, it was the exact same thing. "How… the… hell… AM I SUPPOSED TO GET DOWN FROM HERE GODDAMMIT!?!?" he screamed, punching the ground hard.

**-CRACK-**

"GAH…" He sweatdropped. The platform sticking out of the mountain face cracked… "GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!" his voice echoed as he fell lower and lower…

**-THUD-**

"ow…"

_Ash may have gotten rid of Aquamarine for now, but their battle isn't over. Aquamarine, determined as ever has found a new goal, to kill Ash Ketchum, and he will begin as soon as he can… uh… move. Ash hasn't won Misty's heart yet, and Aquamarine will do anything not to let it happen, and things might be different in the next match… providing he becomes less crippled. And speaking of next match, will Ash stand a chance against the mighty Sky Render?_

(TO BE CONTINUED)


	12. Honourable Overkill

Chapter 12- Honourable Overkill

_Aquamarine was unlike any opponent I have ever faced before, and he was by far the strongest. When I think about it, me winning was really a miracle. This battle made me realise a lot things, like how much I need to improve. I may have to fight others like him in the future, and if I want to have a chance of survival, I need to get strong. That's what scares me. When I get caught up in the intensity of the battle, I forget that I'm putting my life on the line here, and there is a possibility of death. Up till now, I've only been surviving on luck, and against Aquamarine, I just used up the last of it, for soon, I was to face an opponent unlike any other. Those who say that Pokémon masters are the strongest know nothing. The world is vast, and the strongest aren't the ones who are bound to the pokémon leagues. I didn't know it yet, but I was about to face the one deemed absolutly undefeatable… the greatest fighter in the world… the man with no equal… the legendary Sky Render…_

_-Ash Ketchum_

(Location- Rooftops)

"Man, they weren't kidding when they said not to get him mad. If I wanna fight him, I'm gonna have to be more careful!" Bonsai sat on the ledge of the rooftop. A day has passed since Ash's battle against Aquamarine. Though it may not seem like much healing time, for Ash Ketchum, it was plenty. He was fully recovered by now. "To think that anyone other than Sky Render and Aquamarine could heal that fast, he really isn't a normal person. Are we really gonna go at him, all at once?"

"Too bad, if I had it my way, I would've left him alone, long enough to mature and grow as a fighter some more. Especially if we're ALL going to attack him, he'd need it." said AntiArctic. Bonsai sighed in agreement. "Anyways, I'll be joining the rest of the group" Antiarctic said, "Just do your job and lure him to Green Forest!" The frozen fiend turned around and walked off

"W-wait! Why do I have to lure him there myself?!" Bonsai exclaimed

"Because it's your job" G.I. Jolt patted Bonsai on the back, "Remember, you're the fastest out of us, and all you have to do is bring him to us. Get him to chase you, we don't care how, attack him if you have to, as long as he comes"

"But isn't that a little dangerous?" asked Bonsai

"Pfft… a little!?" Jolt burst out laughing, "Sky Render chose you to do the job because he knows you're capable, and don't think he won't bash your head if you fail! I'd help you get him here, but if I fight EVERY one of your battles for you, you'll never get stronger!" G.I. Jolt turned around and walked off

Bonsai sweatdropped "Why do I lay my life on the line like this? Obviously trying to exploit any weakness Ketchum has will just lead to disaster, I'm gonna have to be careful…"

(Location- Teal Ville Town Square)

"…And that's what happened" Said Ash, he had just recounted the entire battle he had against Aquamarine. After returning yesterday, he was too exhausted to even speak, and they were really curious to know what happened.

"Amazing!" Ebi sat down on a bench, "I really didn't know how well you'd do against a stronger super fiend, but you've just beaten a REALLY tough one! That guy is the second strongest out of the whole group!"

"I'm having less and less doubt that you're gonna be the greatest pokémon master! I was asking around some of the local trainers on the Fiends, and Aquamarine's said to be invincible! He crushed thousands of opponents, and a lot of them were pokémon masters! To think you could beat the guy!" Said Brock

"…Aquamarine did all that?" Misty spoke to herself, "THAT JERK! After hearing about him doing such… STUPID things, I hate him even more! Why didn't you tell us about this earlier?! I would've loved to take another swipe at that guy's head with ye 'old reliable mallet" She crossed her arms, "Trying to win me over by getting strong is dumb enough, but that idiot has taken his low point to new heights! Imagine, he thinks he can win my hand by winning a fight… what makes him think that would make me fall for him over A… I mean… just forget about it!"

Ash didn't hear what she was saying. He was too busy feeling sorry for himself, "Normally by now, I'd be training and trying to get stronger, but I really don't feel much like doing anything right now… my cap is in… pieces"

"Really?" Ebi asked, "Do you have the pieces?"

"Here they are" Ash pulled them out of his pockets

"Thanks!" Ebi grabbed them, "Here, give me a bit of time and I'll have this thing fixed good as new, and even better!"

"You think you can fix this thing?" Ash asked, "I thought you only do gadgets and stuff!"

"Trust me, in the meantime, you go battle bad guys to pass the time, and take this!" Ebi handed Ash green-white marble pokéball, "I designed this new ball just for your battles against the super fiends. I call it the nitro ball. It is highly explosive and will do a lot of damage to any enemy it hits. I haven't given your board a supply of them yet, so use it carefully. For capturing pokémon they're useless"

"Thanks Ebi, I know for any technical support I could count on you!" Ash accepted the new pokéball

"Prepare yourself, Ketchum!" A voice called

"Huh?"

"BANZAIIIIIII!" Bonsai shouted and dashed right past Ash, his arms whirling through the air and a fan in each hand.

"Wa? What was that all about?" Ash wondered. Suddenly, his eyes opened wide, as he felt a tremendous burning pain on his arm, "Ow…!" he exclaimed, as he felt more and more of it, all over his arms! "OWWW! WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO TO ME?!"

"Ash Ketchum! I'm here to fight you!" Bonsai pointed at him

"Who are you?!" Ash screamed, waving his arms which were covered in many thin cuts. They weren't deep enough to be considered deadly, but were extremely painful

"Consider that our official challenge to you, from the Super Fiends!" Bonsai smiled and opened up a war fan. It was a weapon shaped like a Japanese style fan, but was made of metal instead of paper and had sharp blades at the end.

"You're a super fiend?! Bonsai…" Ash growled, "BAYLEEF! USE RAZOR LEAF!" Ash threw a pokéball and yelled

"BAYBAAAY!" Bayleef materialized and sent the leaves flying through the air towards Bonsai

"URGH!!!" The razor leaves thrown by Bayleef struck Bonsai's hands and arms, leaving as many cuts on the fiend's arms as on Ash's

"We're even now!" Ash smirked, the pain in his arms was starting to leave. After all, he has felt more painful things over the years

Misty smirked, "I already heard about you, and I'll bet you know about Ash, and how strong he is! He beat the second BEST out of you guys!"

"It's not the strength that matters to us!" Bonsai smirked "The stronger our opponents, the harder we will fight! Prepare yourself!"

"I don't care who you are, but I'll NEVER back down on a challenge!" Ash pulled out a pokéball. "Get ready!" The group prepared themselves for an attack. Bonsai smiled, and then he turned around and ran. "WA!" Ash fell over in stupidity. He was expecting a tougher fight from a Super fiend! "What?! You're running away?!"

"Too many civilians, too much noise and too much interference! We'll take this battle elsewhere" Bonsai shouted as he moved with blinding speed

"Fine with me! I was wondering when the next fiend battle will be taking place, and I guess it'll be right now!" Ash ran after him. As he was running, he pulled the QuickSilver board off his back and threw on the ground in front of him, and then hopped on, speeding ahead to catch Bonsai

"ASH! WAIT UP!" Misty started running, trying to catch up with them

"It's about time I attend a Super Fiend battle! We've had two so far, and I've missed both!" Brock also followed

"I'm not a pokémon trainer, or that strong even! But I'll have to do what I can! I just hope I can contribute enough with my support in the fight!" Ebi spoke to himself and started running to the battlefield

(Location- Green forest clearing)

"Bonsai!" Ash shouted and jumped off the QuickSilver. "(_Man, that guy can run fast…!_)" Ash thought to himself, he couldn't see him anywhere. Right now, Ash was having a strange feeling, it was his pokémon trainer instincts kicking in. It was warning him… of danger… "WA!" Ash ducked as a bunch of projectiles flew through the air, barely missing his head. Ash sweatdropped "What the…?" he said, looking at the projectiles embedded in a tree. They looked like darts, but they were made of… ice? Looking around, Ash could sense danger, but he couldn't tell from where. Whoever attacked had masked his presence flawlessly, making no sound whatsoever.

"So you've finally arrived!" A cold wind blew, and a figure jumped out of nowhere. Standing atop the trees, a ninja clad in dark blue. "I am AntiArctic."

**CRASH! **

"WA?!" Ash looked around, a HUGE figure was emerging from the dense woods, pushing aside trees with ease, for a second it looked like a big Machamp was doing all this, but then Ash saw that he was a human! "What the…" he gasped, seeing the figure fully. A giant blonde haired soldier… "L… Lieutenant Surge…!?" he saw the man who resembled the gym leader he had fought so long ago…

"HAHAHA! Wrong! I see you've met my cousin!" The giant laughed. This man did share similarities to the gym leader, but there were some clear differences. His body was full of scars, and the muscles on his arms were many times larger than Surge's. This wasn't a man who spent his days battling with a pokémon, but a wilder dangerous one who fought with his own two hands! "My name is G.I. Jolt!"

"Scared already, Ketchum?" The next Fiend swooped down from the air, and levitated above the ground, crossing his arms, "What's the matter? Never seen a man fly before?" he laughed, looking at the expression on Ash's face, "Nothing's impossible for a super psychic like me. The name's Twin Dreamer!"

"Huh?!" Ash turned around and looked behind him, "Another one!?"

"No need for fancy intros" It was small man, holding a scythe and dressed completely in black. He was deathly pale and very thin. "Goth. Just call me that."

"Just how many fiends are there?!" Ash exclaimed

"Up till now, you have been a great thorn in our side." The last fiend stood atop a tree. He was dressed in a white Gi, and wearing two swords, one hanging from his side, the other from his back. His hair was black and spiky, and at the back of his head it was tied into a ponytail. He slowly approached Ash, "Challenging my team was your first mistake, facing me will be your last. I am the leader of the Super Fiends. I am Sky Render"

"Hmm…" Ash glared up at Sky Render. "So you're the leader…" Ash spoke, not taking his eyes off him for a second. Ash's instincts were warning him about everyone here. The way they acted, the way they moved… he could sense they were all extremely powerful… but this man… the leader… he was on a different level altogether.

"That is correct" Sky Render nodded lightly, "There is one more member who you haven't seen before, but he is currently unavailable. I'm putting him on defensive. He will keep your friends from coming to your help." He glared down at Ash, "You're alone now Ketchum… prepare yourself!"

"Grrr…" Ash growled. In every direction was a powerful Super Fiend, and Sky Render jumped down from the tree and stood ready for battle…

(Meanwhile)

"HURRY! He was running this way! We have to catch up!" Misty sprinted as fast as she can, trying to catch up

"(huff) Yeah… we mustn't (gasp) waste… time!" Brock ran as fast as he could. He didn't know just how everyone else could sprint non-stop without tiring out. "Why do they always have to do this? Running off to fight in some remote location… so remote that the fight ends the second I arrive…!"

"Then I guess you won't have to worry about missing ANYTHING!" A voice called. The ground exploded, and someone stepped out. "The reason I'm not fighting Ketchum right now is because my one and only leader sent me here to keep you guys from interfering! Cleft's my name, and if you wanna see your friend, you gotta get past me!"

"WHAT?!" Brock exclaimed, but Misty was shocked for a different reason.

"Ash…? He's there, by himself, fighting all of the fiends at once?! I HAVE TO HELP!" She dashed forwards…

**CRACK!! **

Cleft punched into the earth and created a large crevice in the ground, stopping her. "I told you, I will not let you pass…"

"Nothing is gonna stop me from helping Ash, not you, not ANYBODY!" Misty swung her mallet at Cleft's face, but Cleft tilted his head back, out of the reach of the heavy wooden hammer.

"We're fighting a Super Fiend, but we'll have to do this without Ash! I'm gonna have to be careful! EVERYBODY! GO!"

"You think you actually stand a chance?" A voice called. Everybody turned around to see who it was. Sitting up there on a tree branch, his head leaning relaxed against his arms, "Hey Cleft! It'll be way too unfair if we both fight at once! Can I count on you to take care of them?"

"You kidding!? They're just pokémon trainers! I can do this in my sleep!" Cleft laughed and took up a fighting stance

"Grrr…" Brock and Misty growled, those two fiends were so sure of themselves… they weren't gonna get away with this!

"This is bad…!" Ebi growled as he ran into the scene, seeing the two faced with Cleft. "Misty! No eyes!" He shouted, the two turned to him, "Don't go rushing into him! The Fiend's arrogance isn't because he's overconfident, it's because it's the truth!" He shouted, "Among fighters, this group stands at the top of the world! Even pokémon masters don't amount to anything when faced with these criminals!"

"That may be…" Misty spoke, "But that doesn't matter to us…! We'll fight with everything we got!"

(Location- Ash's battle)

"UNGH!" Ash was thrown back when Sky Render swung the wooden sword. Though he blocked it using the QuickSilver, the hit was strong enough to send him flying!

"I expected a lot more, from the one who beat Aquamarine…" Sky Render spoke in a calm voice, "And believe me, I'm holding back. I'm holding back a _lot_"

"You think I'm so weak you have to handicap yourself?! I'll show you! EVERYBODY! GO!!!" Ash threw his pokéballs, releasing Snorlax, Tauros, Totodile, Bayleef and Cyndaquil, while Pikachu stood ready. "MEGA PUNCH! TAKE DOWN! CRUNCH! VINE WHIP! FLAMETHROWER! THUNDER!!!" he shouted, pointing at Sky Render…

"NOT SO FAST!!!" As Tauros charged forwards, G.I. Jolt stepped forwards and grabbed him by the horns, "RHAA!!!!" He roared, pulling Tauros down and slamming him to the ground. "HMM!!!" he spun around grabbed Snorlax by the wrist, stopping his mega punch, "Heh… nice power…" he smirked, "LET ME SHOW YOU MINE!" he shouted, smashing Snorlax in the stomach with his fist. That one blow was strong enough to make Snorlax fall to his knees, writhing in pain.

"TWIN DREAM!!!!" Twin Dreamer fired a gigantic spiralling beam of psychic energy.

**SMASH!!!**

"CYNDAAA!!!" Cyndaquil screamed as the Twin Dream attack crashed through the flames, and hit him hard, sending him flying

"HMMM!!!" As Totodile pounced forwards, Goth jumped into the battlefield, raising his scythe in defence so Totodile bit into the metal blade. "Heh… is that all? HAA!!!" Goth swung the scythe with all his strength, with Totodile hanging on the end…

**CRASH!!!**

"TOTO…!!!" Totodile screamed as Goth slammed him right through a tree. Totodile's jaws let go of the scythe, as he hit the ground and blacked out

"How can you even think of fighting Sky Render…" AntiArctic appeared in front of Bayleef, and caught his vines his icy hands, "IF YOU CAN'T EVEN GET THROUGH ME!!?" He pulled with all his strength, and Bayleef came flying forwards, "HA!!!" AntiArctic flipped through the air, towards the grass pokémon…

**CLASH!!!**

"Bay…" Bayleef trembled… "Leaf…" its legs gave away, and collapsed to the ground. Its body was shivering, and encrusted with frost.

"The cold cuts right to the bone… wouldn't you agree?" asked AntiArctic

"WHAT?!" Ash exclaimed. How was this possible… in less than a second, all his pokémon were taken out by these fiends! And they weren't even using pokémon! How could any humans be so strong?!

"HMM!" as Pikachu was about to attack with lightning, Sky Render's hand shot up and grabbed him over the head, "Don't be surprised. You're not the first one who's faced the might of the Super Fiends and failed. Against G.I. Jolt's superhuman strength, Twin Dreamer's psychic powers, Goth's mastery of darkness and AntiArctic's techniques of ice… indeed, not even pokémon can compete with the power they hold." He said, clutching Pikachu in his hands

"AH! PIKACHU!!!" Ash screamed

"Pika…" Pikachu growled, "PIKACHUUU!!!!!"

**BZZZTTT!!!!**

"Hm…" Sky Render stared at Pikachu, with a bored expression on his face. Even as lightning was surging right through him, he didn't show any signs of pain. "Is that all?" he asked, as the electricity stopped, and he saw Pikachu was panting

"GRR… LET GO OF PIKACHU!!!" Ash screamed, charging towards Sky Render…

"Fine then. We'll give you back your pokémon" said Sky Render…

**THUNK!!**!

"WAAAHHH!!!" Ash screamed, when Sky Render threw Pikachu through the air, hitting him in the face. "Ungh… AGH!" he yelped as Goth, Twin Dreamer and AntiArctic threw Tototile, Bayleef and Cyndaquil at him. "Agh… ow… WA!!!" his eyes opened wide. Quickly, he snatched the four pokémon in his arms and dove aside…

**SMASH!!!!**

"WAAA!!!" Ash screamed, when G.I. Jolt lifted Snorlax and Tauros and threw them at him. "Wa…" Ash gasped, he barely missed those two… "GRRRR!!!!" he growled, getting up, "RETURN!" he shouted, calling them back as the Fiends laughed at him. "GRR… so that's it?! The almighty Super Fiends think they're so powerful, when in reality they're so weak, they can't even fight me on their own and have to gang up on me all at once?! Is that it?! HUH?!"

"On the contrary" said Sky Render, "My team did not make any moves until you started calling your pokémon into battle" he crossed his arms, "If you call others to fight for you, then I will do the same, and my team will fight for me." Sky Render glared at him, "This is between you and me, and I will not have you bring in anyone to interfere. If you do, they will come down and make short work of it"

Ash growled, he was cornered like a rat. If he uses a pokémon, the Super Fiends will all attack him. If he didn't, he'd be dead on account of Sky Render himself!

(Location- Vs. Cleft)

"HAAAA!" Cleft punched Onix with his metal gloves, and broke out several chunks of rocks from Onix's body. This, along with the many other injuries Onix took from this guy was too much. Onix got hurt and collapsed "Heh… what are you thinking, trying to use a rock-type against me?! HAAA!!!!"

"ARGH!!!" Brock screamed when Cleft charged forwards and tackled him, sending him stumbling back and gasping for breath. "Why you…!" Brock growled, "HA!" he let out a shout, punching the super fiend in the chest

"That barely itched!" The fiend shouted, and then slammed his elbow directly into Brock's gut. Brock flew back and hit the ground,

"Ungh… agh…! He's… he's too strong…!" Brock gasped desperately

"BROCK! NO!" Misty shouted. "STARYU! DOUBLE EDGE!" She shouted

"HA!" Staryu sprung into the air, spinning like a shuriken towards Cleft's face

"Whoop!" Cleft casually tilted his body, and the pokémon flew right past him. "Too slow" he smiled…

"OH REALLY?!" Misty shouted, "SWIFT ATTACK!"

"Huh?" Cleft looked up, as thousands of tiny, sharp stinging stars rained down at him! "HMM!" Firmly placing his feet onto the ground, he crossed his arms in the X position. The attack ended, and he stood there unharmed. "Ouch, that stung a little!" he lowered his arms and laughed… but saw Misty wasn't standing still

"NOW'S MY CHANCE!!!" Misty ran forward with a hammer… "HAAA!!!!"

**SMACK!**

"URK!" Cleft exclaimed, when Misty smashed her hammer straight into his face

"HMPH!" Misty held the hammer over her shoulder as Staryu came flying in her direction, "STARYU! NOW! WATER GUN! MAXIMUM STRENGHT!"

"AAAAH!" Cleft screamed as the water pressure lifted him right off the ground and sent him flying into the woods

"Ha-ha! Water beats ground!" Misty cheered

"Ugh… th-thank you Misty…" Brock gasped for air as Misty helped him up

"Easy there Brock" Misty smiled, "Now there's no one in our way! Let's go help Ash!"

"NOT SO FAST!" Cleft stepped out of the woods, soaking wet, "What was that you said about Water beating ground?" he spat to the side, "I'm a human being! Only ground pokémon get hurt when touched by the water element, you moron!"

"HAHAHA!!!!" Bonsai laughed from up in the trees, "You're losing your touch Cleft! That girl got you good!"

"SHUT UP!" Cleft shouted angrily, slamming his fist against the tree Bonsai sat in

**-CRACK-**

"WHOA-WHOA-AAAAAAHHH!!!"

**(THUD)**

Misty, Brock and Ebi watched in shock. Cleft had punched the tree, causing it to break in half and sent the grass Fiend falling to the ground.

"Ouch…!" Bonsai groaned, getting up. He stretched a little and then turned around, "What was that for?!"

"Quit slacking off and actually fight! Not that I need your help in crushing these weaklings, but the sooner we get them out of the way, the sooner we can go see Sky in action!" Cleft shouted

"When you put it that way…" Bonsai drew his weapons, a pair of bladed war fans.

"GEODUDE! Up your attack and defence with harden and then follow up with DYNAMIC PUNCH!" Brock yelled

"GEO! DUDE!" Geodude became diamond-hard with the move. His body wasn't the only thing that toughened up, his knuckles did too "GEEEEO!" Geodude dashed forwards, swinging his heavy fists

**CRACK! **

"Hmph… Pitiful" Cleft scoffed, his arm outstretched. Right before the pokémon's fist reached him, Cleft had punched first, and Geodude's body cracked all over. Geodude got hurt and collapsed… "In both reach and power, I'm far superior"

"HAAAA!" Bonsai immediately dashed forwards towards Staryu, slashing repeatedly, cutting off Staryu's arms. He then folded both his metal fans, "RHA!!!" swinging both his arms, he struck the metal base of his weapons against Staryu's jewel, causing it to crack! The pokémon's strength faded and it collapsed…

"STARYU!" Misty screamed, running to her injured pokémon. Though the starfish pokémon could regrow lost limbs, she knew it was in pain…

"It's no use! They're too strong!" Ebi shouted. Earlier the two were throwing everything they got at Cleft and were getting nowhere… and now that Bonsai has stepped in, the battle has become too one-sided!

"There is no point in going on" said Bonsai, turning to them, "You've already lost, and we'll give you the chance to run."

"You're way out of your league" said Cleft, "The only one among you could possibly compete with us is Ketchum, and he's not here!"

"He's right…" Misty spoke to herself, "Ash isn't here to fight for us, but that's not gonna stop me from fighting!" she said, remembering how he fought Doppelganger. "He fought with the odds stacked against him, and he didn't give up!" She glared at the two super Fiends, "I won't back down… I WON'T RUN AWAY!!!"

(Location- Ash's battle)

**WHAM! **

"WAAA!" Ash screamed as he slid back, after blocking a heavy blow from Sky Render's wooden sword. "GRR…" Ash growled and straightened up, his right arm was in pain. Even though it was shielded, Sky Render's hits were so strong, the shock from the bokuto seemed to pass right through. "(_Too… strong…!_)" Ash grimaced, "(It's nothing but a wooden sword… my arm hurts so much… like it's going to break…!)" he growled… and the dark realization was beginning to set in. If this man had been using the real sword from the beginning, he would have been dead long ago. "(_How… how could I have been so stupid…? To even hope to stand a chance against this man… he and I… the difference between us… it… it's just impossible!_)"

"So you finally realize it?" Asked Twin Dreamer, having read Ash's mind. "It is absolutely hopeless… Sky Render is the strongest in the world! Trash like you can NEVER hope to defeat him!"

"That's enough, Twin Dreamer" Sky Render said, and approached Ash…

"URGH… AH!" Ash screamed when he raised the QuickSilver arm over his head and blocked, but Sky Render quickly struck his stomach, knocking the air out of Ash's lungs. Before anything else happened, he swung the wooden sword at the back of Ash's legs, causing him to trip and fall. Before he hit the ground, Sky Render struck him again, sending him flipping upwards through the air. "Hmph…" Sky Render turned around as Ash hit the ground. "You claim to have defeated Aquamarine, yet you cannot even lay a finger on me. Did he LET you win? You're not so tough…"

"Actually, he really is!" G.I. Jolt pointed at Ash, "He is weakling, both physically and mentally, but the kid is still really tough! Look! He's getting up!"

"Hm?" Sky Render turned around and saw Ash getting up, "You're still standing?"

"Heh-heh-heh…" Ash laughed weakly and smiled, "it'll take more than that to take me down, ya pointy-haired freak!"

"What did you call me…?" Sky Render growled, "You should know better than to insult your betters… HAAA!" Sky swung the weapon

"AH!" Ash exclaimed as the sword hit him, hard. He stumbled, and Sky Render attacked again and again, "Holding back this much, you're really underestimating me…" Ash gritted his teeth… taking the attacks, "Aquamarine's punch…" he spoke, clenching his fist… "WASN'T THIS WEAK!!!!"

**SMACK!**

"NGH!" Sky Render exclaimed and stumbled back, when Ash punched him

"AH…" All the other Super Fiends gasped…

"Hm!" Ash took a fighting stance, "I took the full brunt of Aquamarine's fury. Compared to everything he did, your attacks are soft!"

"YOU!" the other fiends shouted and dove down

"WA?!" Ash exclaimed as AntiArctic appeared behind him and grabbed his arm, twisting it behind his back. That wasn't all, but he felt the cold blade of a scythe press against his neck, and he could see Goth holding it to his throat. Twin Dreamer landed next to him and held his hand over Ash's head, ready to destroy his mind at any moment, while G.I. Jolt stood in front of him, cracking his knuckles, ready to crush the boy…

"That's enough" said a voice

"Huh?" the Super Fiends looked up at Sky Render

"Hmm…" Sky Render's eyes moved to his cheek, which had a small mark on it left by Ash's fist. "So you managed to hit me." He spoke, and then looked at the other fiends, "Let him go" Immediately, they withdrew as quickly as they snatched him

"Agh…" Ash gasped. Those Fiends… had they wanted to, they could have killed him right on the spot! So why didn't they?

"You managed to hit me" Sky Render touched his cheek, "That punch was quite impressive. Fast… strong… surely with that one hit, you would have eliminated any other opponent… had they been someone other than me" he spoke, taking a fighting stance. "Hmph!" he held his bokuto and ran towards Ash…

"URGH…!" Ash growled as he raised his arms quickly, defending himself from Sky Render's attacks, "HA!" he swung his fist, but Sky Render simply evaded it.

"Hm! Until that one strike, all of your punches were like this." Sky Render moved his body, easily dodging every one of Ash's hits. "Random, sluggish and WEAK!"

"AH!" Ash stumbled back when Sky Render hit his forehead

"If that one lucky shot was your best, then you have no chance of surviving this battle!" Sky Render shouted and attacked, dashing forwards and swinging the weapon at the side of Ash's neck, but Ash blocked it with the QuickSilver arm and punched with the other. It was too slow however, and Sky Render moved his head and dodged it, "However… while your fighting style may be awkward…"

"RHAAA!!!!" Ash roared, his fist shot forwards…

**SMACK!**

"GRRR…" Ash growled, his fist still pressed against Sky Render's cheek…

"Hmm…" Sky Render stood still. Although he had been slammed right in the face by a metal armoured fist, there was no reaction. He didn't stumble, flinch, or show any sign of pain. On the contrary, he was smiling… "I can see it now…" he said, looking at Ash, "Your determination… no matter how many you get hit, no matter how many times you fall… your will to go on, you do not allow yourself to quit, you keep getting back up, and fight beyond your limits… that's your strength!" he said, looking at Ash's eyes, "And the intensity of those eyes…" he spoke, "Full of power and passion, glaring right into me, almost willing me to lose!"

"HAA!!!!" Ash shouted, striking forwards with his fist once more…

"HM!!" Sky Render moved his entire body, evading the attack completely, "However… gifted as you are, you're still nothing but a novice. If I hadn't been going easy on you up till now, you wouldn't even be able to touch me once"

"Yeah right! Don't make any excuses!" Ash shouted

"Hmph… So you don't believe me?" Sky Render sighed, "Fine… I'll prove it."

"AH?!" Ash gasped, when before he could react, Sky Render was right in his face…!

**SLAM!!!**

"AAAAGHH!!!!" Ash screamed as he was sent flying into the air, "UUUGH!!!" he growled as he landed on the ground behind Sky Render, gasping to stand up, "WHY YOU!!!!" he punched at him, "HUH?!" he exclaimed when Sky Render simply raised one hand and blocked it, without even looking at Ash, "WAGH!!!" Sky Render swung the bokuto and slammed him across the face. Ash growled as he fell back. Sky Render was beating him… and his back was turned on Ash! "WHY YOU!!!!"

"You remember what I said about the intensity?" Sky Render spoke calmly, turning around and looking at Ash…

"AH!?" Ash immediately froze when he saw Sky Render's eyes…

"HA!" Sky Render moved forwards, and struck the bokuto into Ash's stomach. Ash screamed and fell to the ground. "Hm… you remember what I said about the intensity in your eyes?" he asked, "It's simple actually… my will and determination is that much greater than yours."

"Grrr…" Ash struggled to get up. He knew what Sky Render was talking about, the power and passion, willing you to lose… but the intensity in Sky Render's eyes… it was so much greater than his own! So much that he froze just by looking at them!

"Grrr…" Ash growled, he could feel his strength diminishing, simply because of Sky Render's eyes. The power… there was something strange about him… he could sense it, just by looking at his eyes. He was nothing like the fierce and brutal Aquamarine, he was calm and relaxed. But this power… it was unlike anything he's seen before. Sky Render really was holding back. His power… he was far stronger than Ash, far greater than Aquamarine's… no… it didn't end there. It was beyond anything human! Even legendary pokémon didn't hold this much power! Who… no… WHAT was he?!

"Hmph… it's always the same story, for everyone challenges Sky Render." Said AntiArctic, as their leader approached Ash, "People always think 'Maybe I can do it… maybe I can stand up to him…' but soon after the battle begins, you instantly realize how wrong you are. It's happening to Ketchum now… he is realizing that he can never win…" he said solemnly, as Sky Render slowly approached Ash…

(Location- Vs. Bonsai & Cleft)

**CLANG!** Brock slammed Cleft on the back of the head with his frying pan

**BAM!** Misty swung the mallet straight in Bonsai's the face

"GAH!" Both fiends stumbled back.

"Pant… pant…!" said Misty and Brock were gasping for air… they had been fighting their hardest with their remaining pokémon and makeshift weapons against these seemingly unstoppable enemies.

"They're putting up a good fight" Said Cleft

"Yeah… for rookies that is" said Bonsai. The two of them could easily continue for hours. This wasn't even a contest. "Still… I'm surprised how long they lasted"

"It isn't over yet…! As official Gym Leaders, we'll teach you to look down on us…!" Brock panted

"Ah, Gym Leaders. How quaint." Bonsai said, slowly approaching them, "You have pretty good potential, but it's way too early for you to think about fighting us"

"Come fight us again after a bit of training! Like ten years worth!" Cleft shouted, raising his fist… "GROUND ZER- AAAAAGH!!!!!"

"AAAAARGH!!" Bonsai screamed. From out of nowhere, a huge round of Pokémon attacks flew out of the sky, slamming into them! The resulting impact was a massive explosion that sent the two of them flying clear into the sky and out of sight!

"What was that?!" Misty Brock and Ebi all shouted

"No one, and I mean NO ONE hurts my friends!" Said the guy. Standing next to him were two large pokémon, and three smaller ones. "I'm finally here! Sorry about the lateness" he looked at Misty, Brock, and the new guy he's never seen before

(Location- Ash's battle)

"NGH…" Ash struggled to get up as Sky Render approached him.

"You still have the strength left to stand?" Sky Render asked, rather surprised

"Not just stand… fight too" Ash panted, taking a fighting stance. "You know… you are right…there really is no way I can win…" he looked down, "But…"

"Hm?" Sky Render and the fiends looked at Ash… something was different about him… his breathing became slower, his trembling stopped…

"HM!!!" Ash raised his head and glared at them. Sky Render's eyes opened wide, as the other fiends watching suddenly jumped back. The intensity in Ash's eyes… it changed completely, it matched that of Sky Render! "THERE'S NO WAY I'LL EVER GIVE UP!!!!" Ash roared… charging forwards, "RHAAAA!!!!!!

**SMACK!!!**

"UNGH!!!" Sky Render exclaimed, and fell over onto his back

"AH…" All the other Super Fiends gasped. They were all trembling, looking down at Ash, not believing what they just saw. "Sky Render… he's down!"

"ugh…" Sky Render sat up, "Hmm?" he moved his hand and touched his mouth with his thumb. His eyes widened, when he saw blood.

"He… he's bleeding!" G.I. Jolt trembled. All of the fiends turned their head at Ash. That kid… who was struggling to stand a few seconds ago, had brought Sky Render to the ground! "W… who is that kid!?"

"Like that? Because more's on the way!" Ash was in a fighting stance. Ash regained the confidence he needed. With the confidence, Ash felt all the pain from where Sky Render hit him with that wooden sword fade, and he felt ready for anything

"Hmm… heh…" Sky Render chuckled as he got up, "You're really not an ordinary guy, are you Ash?" he asked. Ash noticed Sky Render called him by his first name, instead of just 'Ketchum'. "So this is the power that defeated Aquamarine…" slowly, he put away the wooden sword he was holding, and his hand reached to his back, unsheathing the mighty sword, Skyfall… "HAAA!!!!"

"HUH?!" Ash gasped, before he could react, Sky Render had darted forwards, towards him! "AAAH…!" he raised his arms in defence…

**CLASH!!!!**

"NGH… AH!" Ash screamed, the second Sky Render struck the QuickSilver, he spun his body and swung the sword, faster than ever to his neck… But the moment the sword touched his skin, Sky Render stopped the swing which surely would have beheaded him. "AAAH!!!" Ash screamed, when Sky Render pulled the sword back, leaving a small cut on the side of his neck. "GRR…" he growled, placing his hand over that small cut, "AHH!!!" Sky Render swung again, slashing Ash's chest with only the tip of the blade. "AH…" Ash gasped, looking down at his shirt, which had a rip in it. The swing was handled with so much and dexterity, it didn't even touch his skin, but the force… it was so strong it threw him back!

The fighting continued, but it was completely one sided. So many times Ash tried to hit him, but not once could he touch the fiend, and Sky Render kept swinging his sword, but stopping them and pulling it back inflicting only small wounds. By now, Ash was covered in so many tiny cuts, if Sky Render didn't stop his swings, Ash would have been in pieces by now.

"AH!!!" Ash screamed as Sky Render stopped a swing that would've chopped off his arms, and pulled it back, inflicting another small cut. "Ugh… agh…" Ash panted. His clothes was stained in blood, and his body was covered in so many small cuts. Even though none of them were critical, there were so many… "Grr…" he growled, looking up at his opponent. Sky Render wasn't even sweating. Even the mark from Ash's punch seemed to have faded away, and while Ash was exhausted, Sky Render looked like he could go on. "Ungh…" Ash gasped, struggling to stand

"You have fought way beyond your limit" Sky Render said, raising his sword, "I should finish you now…" he said, running forwards…

"Grrr… RHAAA!!!" Ash roared and charged towards Sky Render…

**SMASH!!!**

"AAAAHHH!!!!" Ash screamed, when Sky Render slammed him in the face with the handle of the katana. "Ungh… ah…" he gasped. He couldn't take any more. His legs began to wobble… "Agh…" he fell to the ground, and collapsed… Ash was defeated

"It's over…" said Sky Render, lowering his sword… "Huh?" he felt something strange on his ankles, and looked down. His eyes opened wide at what he saw.

"Grrr…" Ash growled, his arm reaching forward and gripping Sky Render by the ankle. Though he was defeated, though he couldn't even stand, he had still managed to wriggle his body and crawl towards Sky Render, grabbing him. "GRRR…" he growled, pulling his body upwards, until he could at least sit up on his knees

"Hmm…" Sky Render glared down at him… "HA-HA-HA-HA!!!!" he burst out laughing, "I was right! You really don't know how to give up!" he laughed, smiling down at Ash, "That's what's so unique about you. No matter how many times I hit you down, you refuse to stop." He said, obviously quite impressed, "You know… you'd make an excellent Super Fiend." He said, kneeling down to Ash's height

"Are you making me an offer to join or something?" Ash growled

"Of course not." Sky Render replied, standing up, "You have won my respect. Though I would be more than happy to let you to join, I know your kind all too well, because you and I… we're exactly the same" he spoke. "You have honour. You chose your path, and will defend it no matter what… the same way I will defend mine. Though our paths are different, we are very similar…" He raised his sword, "Truly I am sorry. Had we met under different circumstances, I'm sure we definitely would have been friends… but you are too dangerous, and there is no other option…"

Ash looked up at him, and then looked down to the ground. Somehow he didn't feel that angry, or any hatred to Sky Render. Strangely, he felt some respect for the Super Fiend. He had a true sense of honour. Sky Render raised the sword…

"HA!" Sky Render swung his sword down…

Ash closed his eyes and cringed, he didn't cry out or anything, even as the sword came down at his… "Huh?" he opened his eyes and blinked, when he saw the sword stop just short of his forehead.

"Surprised? Don't be…" Sky Render smirked, pulling his sword back and twirling it a bit, sheathing it behind his back, "No. I won't kill you… not now anyways" he turned around and walked off, "Do not challenge my team again, Ash. I do not want you as our enemy. Should you continue to act as a hindrance, we will have no choice but to kill you…" Suddenly he stopped walking. "However… if you do insist on remaining our enemy, I have one request." He looked at Ash and smiled, "Get strong, and become a worthy adversary." He kicked off the ground, into the air and out of sight,

"What's he doing?" Asked AntiArctic, "I've never seen him leave a fight!"

"I don't know…" Said Goth

"Ketchum may not be very strong, but Sky Render sees great potential in him, that's why he doesn't want to eliminate him. He's daring Ketchum to get stronger, and that sort of challenge makes him indirectly promise that he'll put up a better fight in the future" Twin Dreamer crossed his arms, "Sky Render has great respect for the kid."

"Maybe Sky respects you enough not to finish you off right now, but I don't! I say we crush the kid right now!" G.I. Jolt cracked his knuckles, and approached Ash… "UNGH!" He exclaimed when Pikachu sprung up and skull-Bashed him on the face, causing him to stumble back a few steps

"Huh? Pikachu?" Ash looked at his pokémon

"Pikachu! Pikachu pika!" Said Pikachu

"No, I didn't exactly forget about you… well, yeah… I did" Ash looked down

"Heh, the mouse packs quite punch there, doesn't he?" G.I. Jolt rubbed his cheek, "Although not enough!"

**FWAP!**

"AAH!" Ash and Pikachu screamed when G.I. Jolt swung his massive arm, sending them flying, but he wasn't done yet.

"HEH!" In each hand, Jolt grabbed Pikachu and Ash by the neck. "Unfortunately for you, you won't even live to see Sky again, because I'm gonna crush you both right here!" He shouted, tightening his grip, "Good thing I wear gloves, because this is gonna be really messy!"

"Oh no you don't! DOUBLE EDGE!" A voice called

"HA!" Starmie flew and slammed the back of Jolt's head

"AGH!" G.I. Jolt dropped Ash and Pikachu

"STARMIE! HYDRO PUMP!!!"

"MEGA PUNCH, GEODUDE! BIND HIM ONIX!"

"FURY SWIPES, SCYTHER!"

"WA! Scyther?!" Ash exclaimed as the five pokémon dashed at Jolt

"Oh no you don't! HAAAAA… ARMAGEDDON FIST!" G.I. Jolt swung his fist at the attackers. Electricity gathered around his fist, and it sounded like thunder had crashed as the explosive power in his fist shattered Starmie's jewel, Scyther's right blade and sent Onix and Geodude into pieces

"If Scyther's here, then that means that… Tracey!"

"Cavalry has arrived!" Tracey gave him a thumbs-up

"This is even better than a party!" AntiArctic jumped from the trees

"It's our turn to fight!" Twin Dreamer grinned

"Finally. I was getting bored…" Goth got up and raised the scythe

"You think so?" Ash smiled, "If Tracey's here, then that means the rest of the backup! It's been so long since I've said this, SOLAR BEAM! HYDRO PUMP! FIRE SPIN! SKY ATTACK!"

"ROAR!" From the air, Charizard opened his mouth and blasted the fire

"SQUIRTLE!" Squirtle withdrew into his shell and spun through the air firing water

"BULBA!" From the bulb on his back, Bulbasaur fired a powerful beam

"PIGEOOO!" At a high speed, Pidgeot swooped from the air and slammed into Twin Dreamer, knocking out of the air

However, even this powerful round of attacks wasn't enough to bring down the fiends. All of them just got right back up. And through the woods, into the scene stepped Bonsai and Cleft, joining the others.

"Hm…" Ash stood there, his friends by his side, and his pokémon in front of him. Though he was bleeding and wounded heavily, that look of intensity still hadn't faded from his eyes, as he slowly managed to take a fighting stance one last time…

"Heh… so this is what he meant…" The fiends stared back at Ash and his team. The intensity, the passion, the power… there was no telling what Ash was capable of… "As much as we'd like to see what you're really capable of… I think we'll follow Sky Render's example, and save it for another day!" They said, disappearing into the woods. "Remember Ketchum! Get stronger, and become a worthy adversary!"

"Hmmm… whew…" Ash sighed and collapsed, exhausted

"ASH!" Misty ran to him to see if he was okay

"He's fine, just really exhausted" Said Ebi, "I'd be like that, more likely even worse if I was the one fighting the legendary Sky Render"

"Sky what?" asked Brock

"Sky Render… the leader and the most powerful of the Super Fiends." said Ebi, "He uses no pokémon, because he has no need for them. His skills are unsurpassed, and with the SkyFall Sword he wields, he is said to be unbeatable in combat.

"That's putting it lightly…" sighed Ash

"Who were those guys you were fighting?" Tracey asked

"I'll explain later" Ash sighed, "I'm tired…"

Ash, Misty, Brock, Tracey and Ebi started making their way back to Teal Ville. "Wait! Now that Tracey and the backup's here, then I'm sure you're ready to take on the Team Rocket base!" Said Brock, "That was the plan in the first place!"

Ebi smiled "And that's not the only good news we have! I've got the latest news! The Missingno gang will be no more in a matter of days! After you beat Doppelganger, he was the only reason the Fiends had ANY connections to that band of weaklings! Without any tough Fiends to help them in the fighting, those guys… what were their names… Jessie and James are leading a bunch of other Team Rocket grunts back to Scarlet City and are gonna crush the Missingno gang. Giovanni's really serious about something, and is trying to eliminate other criminal organisations as we speak. He's already taken out twenty-eight gangs and criminal rings. After beating the bosses and leaders, because Team Rocket promises more than any other gang, it was easy to recruit more guys. He seems to be building an army, for something. You've beaten 001, 003 and 004, and done a ton of damage to the organisation, but I doubt that even YOU'RE a big enough problem to need to build an entire army. And last, but certainly not least, trainers taking the Dark Forest detour away from the Team Rocket base have claimed to be attacked by strange and not to mention HORRIBLE creatures, assumed to be pokémon, but all unidentified and extremely powerful as well as aggressive. I wonder what's this all about?"

Ash sighed. He'd like to get Team Rocket out of the way, and also the Missingno gang, then he could concentrate 100 on getting strong enough for Sky Render, and then there's those creatures, which one should he go? "Can we continue this some other time? I need sleep…"

"Well remember! The choice is yours! You can either head back to Scarlet city and finish off the Missingno gang for good, or you could infiltrate Team Rocket's base and see what they're up to, or investigate the Dark Forest beasts!" Said Ebi, "Oh and by the way, because you're getting stronger opponents, you're gonna need to carry more than six pokémon at a time."

"How am I supposed to do that?" Asked Ash

"The pokéball limit is controlled by your pokédex, and the strong program keeps people from cheating by using more than six" Said Ebi and pulled out a small cartridge thing, "I've discovered a bit of technology SO advanced it can override the code of ANY technology in this world! Put it in your pokédex and you can ignore the six-pokémon limit!"

"SWEET!" Ash put it into the pokédex, "How did you make something like this?"

"I really shouldn't take the credit for something so wondrous, because I didn't make it. I bought it from somewhere." Said Ebi

"Where?" Everyone asked

"Well, keep it a secret, because it's better this news doesn't get out. I bought the thing at Wal-Mart. It's a gameshark" Ebi said proudly. Everybody sweatdropped.

_Even though it was a losing battle against a Super Fiend, Ash couldn't help but respect Sky Render. Will Ash ever become strong enough to defeat him? And in other news, where should they go now? Should they head to Scarlet city and break up the Missingno gang? Should they break into Team Rocket HQ? Or should they investigate the monster claims in the dark forest? I'm going to use all three of these, but which one will I use first? Choose a scenario, Kupo!_

(TO BE CONTINUED)


	13. Kaiser Beast

Chapter 13- Kaiser Beast

_During my time as a trainer, I have encountered many things, good, bad, strange and dangerous like all other trainers encounter during their lives. But I'm not like other trainers. I've made new friends and a lot of enemies, and others I can't classify. Sky Render for example, he's far stronger than me, and I'm not sure if I could catch up to the guy. I don't get the feeling he's really bad, but just on a different side. I'm a lot like him. He's following the path he has sworn, and fights not for what he believes in, honour. I can't help but respect the guy. People say not to judge a book by its cover, because they can be deceiving in some ways, and right in the others. Sky Render may seem bad because he's the leader of a dangerous group, but he has true honour, and not evil. I can feel it. I guess because of all the bad influence he's had during his time as a Fiend and the rough crowd. But maybe, just maybe if I can defeat the fiends, I can open his eyes and to show him a different path, and maybe the next time we fight, it won't be as enemies. But now I have a greater concern, because all this time I was concentrating on the fiends, something much worse has been brewing this whole time. A different enemy, a kind I have never fought before and a greater evil…_

_-Ash Ketchum_

(Location- Green Forest, near Dark Forest)

"CHAARBOK!" Arbok hissed as it slithered closer to its opponent. The massive snake reared its head, doing what it was famous for, with lightning quickness when it…

"STRIKE!" Meowth leaped up and slashed his sparring partner with lightning quickness, "Snake pokémon may be known for quick and lethal poisonous strikes, but if you wait too long that'll give the slowest Slowpoke enough time beat you up before you even blink!" He stretched out his claws, jumped up and spun through the air as he slashed Wheezing, causing him to drop to the ground "Both of you are equipped with poison barbs and that'll increase your poison power, but it'll never do you any good if you can't even hit!" He looked down at his claws, "On the other hand, one item per pokémon may be the legal rules, but rules are things Team Rocket is above! With my Quick Claw, Focus Band, Dire hit, Guard Specs and Scope Lens, I'm invincible!" Meowth growled, "But I've got a dragon scale, and up-grade! And all those rare-candies I've used, I should've evolved a long time ago! What's wrong with me!?"

From the sidelines, Jessie and James were watching the fighting.

"Wow, Meowth's intense! Isn't he James?" Jessie stared in awe

"Yeah, he beat both our pokémon in one-hit each!" James was shaking "It's a wonder he hasn't evolved yet!" James sighed "Boy, if he gets any stronger, he'll be the boss's next agent 001! I'm starting to feel sorry for those Missingno guys, because when Meowth leads the Team Rocket Soldiers into battle against them, they're as good as dead!"

"This really demeans us though! Being led by some mutant, talking-pokémon freak!"

"WHATDIDYOUCALLME!?" Meowth jumped up and used fury swipes on James. With his high-levels and stats-boosting items, the attack was so much stronger and a whole lot more painful too. James groaned and dropped to the ground. "As long as I'm hanging with you's two losers I'm the boss around here! I've got power, I'm strong, I'm cool, and I'll defeat ANY one who challenges me!"

"Is that so, yes? You say you are strong?" an unfamiliar voice spoke

"Hmm?" The three turned around, and saw someone… a figure standing atop the trees, watching them, "Who are you?"

"Hmph… ha-ha-ha… Team Rocket is pathetic, you even call yourself strong… you no even understand meaning of word…" the stranger's accent was strange, but it was pretty obvious he was mocking them

"Oh really!? You wanna piece of us?!" The trio shouted

"No… but I know someone who do" He shook his head, a smile became apparent on his face, "We see how strong you are, when I feed you to Kaiser Beast!" A thunderous roar was heard within the forest. The trio gasped, as trees were being torn out of the ground, as a gigantic creature emerged from the woods…

(Meanwhile)

It has been several weeks since Ash's battle with Sky Render, and he was fully healed. Despite this, he could still remember the intensity when fighting Aquamarine and Sky Render. The two battles have really opened Ash's eyes and he's been training non-stop. The results of his training were apparent, as he had challenged every single pokémon trainer in the city, and defeated each one in a single sweep. The number of battles fought was in the hundreds, and among them included Team Rocket Elites as well as Pokémon Trainers who've participated in Indigo Plateau Leagues, some of which placed even higher than Ash at that time… but at this point, none of them were any match for Ash. He just blew them away, along with every other opponent who fought him. Compared to any other pokémon trainer, Ash had reached a completely different level. After fighting Aquamarine and Sky Render, no pokémon trainer seemed at all like a challenge to him.

Right now, Ash and his pokémon were training in the woods. Normally, he would be found fighting against his own pokémon, so that he and his pokémon would get to practice fighting all at once, but this time… the training was a little different…

"On my count! Hit the target!" Ash yelled. Each pokémon felt rather uneasy about attacking, "Don't make me bring out the pester balls!" Upon hearing him say that, Pikachu, Squirtle, Bulbasaur, and Charizard fired their stongest attacks, Thunder, Hydro Pump, Solarbeam and Fire Blast. Ash shielded with the board…

**BANG!**

"WAAA!" Lucky for him, the QuickSilver board really IS indestructible and shielded him from the attack, well… most of it anyways. The impact sent him flying into the trees. "Waaaaaa… Not bad" He got up and rubbed his head, "Whoa! You guys sure have levelled up since last I saw you!" He sighed. Naturally, Charizards don't learn Fire Blast, but Ash gave him the TM to teach him the move. "It was okay, I guess…"

"Still trying to master it?" Brock stepped forwards

"Uh-huh, and failing." Ash sighed, "I've gotten too strong to train against normal pokémon trainers, but I haven't seen any signs of the Super Fiends either, so I don't know how much the training has paid off. But that's not the problem… it's this attack I'm trying to master. All it's been doing was hit me with a strong, lethal impact! And half the time the attacks just flew off in different directions" he complained

"Isn't hitting you with an intense force what it should be doing?" Asked Tracey. "And I noticed you're only using four pokémon for the so-called super attack!"

"I only need these ones! If these four can do it correctly, then the foundation for it has been created! But it's very hard to do. All they've been doing was simply hitting me with their attacks, but that's not how it works! The four pokémon I've chosen each have an element, representing the main four that compose this world (or so I've heard in RPG's…) Earth, Fire, Wind and Water! Bulbasaur's element is grass, which comes from earth, while Charizard and Squirtle are obviously fire and water. Pikachu is electric, but it can also be classified as wind! If I'm correct, the fusion of these elements will create a power beyond anything we've ever seen!" Ash explained, "However… it's easier said than done. In order to fuse the elements, they have to be in perfect balance, meaning they have to strike as if they were one, with the same strength and perfect synch in order to fuse the four elements into a foundation element. The foundation coming from those fused elements is a base element of incredible power. Like I said, it is a foundation, so once they've been joined, any other of my pokémon can join in with an attack of their own, and because of the base element, all of them can be absorbed and their strength will be contributed into the beam! Also that means that if you guys join in, it'll be stronger! Although that part is more advanced and could be dangerous to ourselves, I'm only gonna try to get the base element beam until we get better at it."

"And you thought up of that one? I didn't think your brain had the capacity to do that much thinking. One question. A dangerous move like that sounds rather dangerous… if you were to use that on normal people, you could end up seriously injuring, if not killing them" Said Ebi, suddenly popping out of nowhere

"Ebi? When did you get here? Ah… never mind…" Ash sighed, "I have no intention of using it on normal people. This technique was made for one thing, to defeat the Super Fiends!" He smirked, looking down at his clenched fist. He's come so far since he started chasing them… but he still remembered the power he experienced from Sky Render when the two of them fought. Ash was still far from being able to challenge him… "Heh… it's just so exciting…" he smiled leaning back against a tree, "How much further will I have to climb before I can reach you?" It was funny. From the name of the opponent he was trying to reach, seemed to represent exactly where he stood. Leaning against an 'ash' tree, looking up to the sky itself… that was still the distance between them. A tree still growing from the earth, reaching up to sky far above… "One day… I'll grow enough to reach you…"

"By the way Ash, have you made the decision?" Asked Ebi, "Where are we gonna go from this point?"

"Yeah! The toughest one has got to be the Team Rocket base. With those elites and army, it's too much to take on the entire organization, and with the tight security and all, it'll take the longest to do, so save it for last. I want to get rid of the annoying Missingno gang, so we should go to Scarlet city and eliminate the Missingno gang before taking on the Team Rocket Society. On the way there we'll have to pass through the dark forest and investigate that monster-thing. With any luck we'll solve the problem!"

"So the order's gonna be the Beasts in the Dark Forest, then we finish off Missingno gang, and THEN go to the Team Rocket base?" Asked Ebi

"Yup" Ash answered

Ebi sighed "I can't help but feel like something's gonna happen. Just hope you master that super attack

"Well before we leave, there's a few things I wanna do! First of all, I wanna know if any of the fiends are hanging around here." said Ash

"I'm sorry, but they're all gone." Ebi shook his head, "The only reason they came is to challenge you. After that, they just got up and left. We won't find them anywhere near this place."

"Hm…" Ash sighed, "Too bad… I wouldn't mind challenging them one at a time, maybe find and fight them, and get stronger with every fiend I beat, like an RPG!"

"Well, I you're that determined, then I'll tell you this." Ebi straightened his glasses, "I took the liberty of taking care of one of those standard 'RPG' tasks, and asked around town. Word on the street is that Cleft has been sighted around the Dark Forest region. If you wanna find him, you better go now. So, shall we?"

"Not yet! I want to master this attack! Let us give it another try before we go! Everyone! Get into formation and fire!" Ash commanded, "One more time! Aim for…" Ash sweatdropped, if that was the real attack successfully done, then he'd be killed even if he shielded himself. "Over there!" Ash pointed at a huge boulder about twenty metres away. That way, Ash could see the attack as it flies through the air

Pikachu, Squirtle, Charizard and Bulbasaur moved into position. Each one charged up their attacks.

"GET READY!" Ash yelled, "FIRE!"

Thunder! Hydro Pump! Fire Blast! Solarbeam! These attacks flew through the air towards the target. About halfway, Ebi could see it breaking up. Right before it hit the boulder, the elements broke up and flew in different directions. Not one piece of it hit the target.

"At close range, the attacks do hit, but don't join together! At long range, it breaks up in different directions without even hitting its target!" Ash complained

"One reason is because it's a nameless attack" Said Ebi, "An example is a pokémon doing a cut attack and a trainer calls it cutting, it won't work. Give it a proper name. A good one that suits it. Pokémon can't respond properly to a nameless attack. Think of a good name, train them the same way, and you will succeed"

"You really think a name could make any good difference?" Ash stared at him

"It'll work. Trust me!" Ebi crossed his arms and nodded

(Location- Dark Forest entrance)

Ash, Misty, Tracey, Brock and Ebi froze in their tracks at the sight of Team Rocket. Jessie, James, Meowth, Arbok, Victreebell and Wobuffet were all on the ground. Badly bruised, burned and injured.

"Waaa… what do you think did that to them?" Ask gulped

"Judging by the burn marks and scratches, it looks like they had been attacked by a Charizard, a particularly strong one" Said Ebi, "However… these three are pretty strong, and not just anyone can beat them… especially injure them to this degree…"

"Ah, you're worrying about nothing!" Ash looked down "Remember, I've done worse to them in the past, and someone did beat them like this, then he must be pretty good! Hey, let's going! Maybe we'll meet the guy who beat them. I'd really like to have a battle with him!" he said happily, running into the forest

The others didn't seem so confident about this. The only monster sceptic in the group was Ash. As they ventured further into the deep dark woods, they failed to realise the danger they were stepping into…

The Dark Forest was full with gnarled, grotesque trees. All dead, dense and blotting out the sun. "Is it just me or did this place get uglier than the last time we came?" Ash looked at the forest in disgust

"Ugh… even though we crossed it safely, I still hate this place! And now that we know something's out there, I hate this forest even more!" Misty grumbled

"Ah, nothing to worry about. Just dense woods, no sunlight, cold, creepy sounds, dead trees in every directions, darkness everywhere… I want out!" Tracey whimpered

"We might as well hurry up, I don't want to be in this place any longer! It's almost afternoon and we're not even halfway!"

Ash sighed, he didn't believe in monsters. He only believed in pokémon, and they were nothing to be afraid of, although they could sometimes be a threat. He didn't know it, but they were being watched. But within the darkness, was a low growling. Something was coming…

(Location- Further in the Dark Forest)

Several hours have passed, and the group was still as rigid as before. They have learned that relaxing isn't a very wise thing to do when in the dark forest. The growling noises have been getting louder. While the rest of the group was scared stiff, Ash was getting impatient. Well, he was, until…

"GROOOAR!" they heard a loud roar in the deep woods

"What was that?!" Tracey exclaimed

"I don't know, but it came from that way!" Brock pointed in the direction where the roar was heard

"Thanks! I think I'll be on my way now!" Ash dashed off in that direction, "It's about time! I was starting to think this whole dark forest thing was a waste of time!"

"ARGH! That idiot!" Misty ran after him

"(sigh) am I the only one who sees the possible danger of running in the direction of a powerful and possibly lethal creature?" Brock sighed and followed them

Ash ran in the direction where he heard the sound. This area seemed pretty normal, thick tall trees in every direction, darkness everywhere, everything seemed normal, except for… Cleft?!

"A Super Fiend!" Ash growled and reached for a pokéball, but stopped when noticed he was lying on the dirt and not moving. Ash approached him cautiously. He picked up a stick that fell on the ground and poked Cleft with it, "Hey! Are you awake? Are you alive?" Cleft was wounded heavily, and was especially burned all over.

"Ash!" Misty finally caught up with him, "AH! It's Cleft!"

"Relax!" Ash continued to poke Cleft, "He's no danger to us right now!"

"Maybe, but I wouldn't poke him with that if I were you! Fooling around like that on a Super Fiend is like poking a lion in the eye, and Cleft's even worse than a lion!" Ebi backed off nervously, "AGH!" He exclaimed

"What?" Ash asked Ebi

"He's… moving!" Ebi backed off

"Ungh…" Cleft was stirring

"Watch out…" Everyone kept their distance. The only one stupid enough to stand near him was Ash with that stick

Cleft's eyes opened wide "GYAAAAA!" He screamed, causing everyone to jump, "NO! GET AWAY! PLEASE! LEAVE ME ALONE!"

Ash sweatdropped nervously and backed off, "I'm not that scary, am I?"

"I don't think he's talking to you! Look at him!" Misty pointed at Cleft

"No… monster… MONSTER!" Cleft was screaming. He was still on the ground and screaming. After that he stopped screaming and blacked out again

"Yikes…" Ash sweatdropped, "Now that was creepy…"

"He's delirious!" Said Ebi, "Something must've attacked Cleft and beaten him so badly! Super Fiends always win their fights, so anything that could beat one is worth being afraid of. And these injuries… we have to get him to a hospital or he'll die! Maybe, he'll also tell us about what did this to him"

"And why go through all that trouble when you have answer right here!" Someone called down from the trees

"Wha?" Everyone looked up and saw somebody. Dressed in a red uniform, with a Chinese-sword hanging from his belt, he looked down at them from the tall trees. He wore a velvety red cape, which carried a strange emblem, which looked like a sword wrapped in chains and surrounded by a ring of flames

"Who're you?" Brock stepped forwards

"What it matter to you, no-eyes?" Said the red-clad guy. He had a Chinese accent

"No eyes?!" Brock growled, and Ash jumped forwards and pushed Brock out of the way before someone got hurt

"It's important! So we'll know whether you're friend or foe!" Said Ash

"Important… feh, nothing you heathens say is important…" Said the man

"Huh?" they stared at him, and Ebi spoke up, "Hey, you're not part of the Missingno gang or Team Rocket or something?"

"Only weak-weaklings are part of Missingno Gang and Team Rocket!" He sneered, "I no join stupid teams even if life depends on it!"

"What? That's funny, because you must be from one of them, because you really don't look like a Super Fiend…" said Ebi

"Super Fiend? No even close! That thing lying there is super fiend! I am not! My name is KN-02, the Red Kaiser! Super Fiend Cleft was best challenge so far, but we want to complete testing! We need more challengers! You do nicely! Hm? What this?" He looked down at Ash

"Hmmm…" Ash looked at this 'Red Kaiser' person…, "I don't know who this guy is, but he just REEKS of bad guy!"

Red Kaiser didn't hear what he said "You! Ash Ketchum! I recognize you! You are strongest in this area, and even fight Super Fiends! Lucky! Good test and food for experimental Kaiser Beast!" Red Kaiser jumped from the branch and shouted "KAISER BEAST CHARRANNOSAURUS! SHOW YOUSELF!" he then ran, disappearing into the darkness.

"What was his problem?" Tracey sweatdropped

"Kaiser Beast? Charrannosaurus? What's that supposed to be?" Ash crossed his arms, but his question was answered in just a few seconds

Out of the darkness they could see two yellow glowing eyes staring at them. Then it emerged, a real monster. At first it was crawling, but then the gigantic creature stood up straight, half the height of the trees, so it was about fifteen feet tall. It had a long tail, powerful looking wings and its scaly body was red, the same thing as a Charizard. There were red spikes running down the creature's back from the head to the end of the tail, and the arms were long and built with powerful muscles. The face was similar to a Charizard's but the mouth had more fangs, and a lot sharper, and it definitely had more firepower than Charizard would ever have. The flame on its tail was huge and blazing with yellow and white flames. There it stood, the Kaiser Beast, Charrannosaurus…

"Gah… so this is what he meant when he said Kaiser Beast. This is the monster that's been attacking the trainers…" Brock gulped

"I've never seen a pokémon like this…!" Misty trembled

"I don't really know if this is a pokémon" Ebi didn't move. He was petrified

"Whatever this thing is, it's dangerous" Tracey stared at the thing, trying not to faint

"And I wanted to fight this thing. I brought this upon myself…" Ash sweatdropped nervously, it was a miracle he hadn't just run away at the sight of the Kaiser Beast

Charrannosaurus raised it's arm and stretched the claws on each of his fingers. Ash has seen this attack done by pokémon many times…

"It's a slash attack! BREAK UP!" Ash shouted. Every one in the group jumped in a different direction, out of the way of the lethal attack. The Kaiser Beast slashed at them but missed, and tore right through a tree trunk with its attack

"GRR… PIKACHU! THUNDER!" Ash yelled

"PIKACHUUU!" Pikachu jumped up and shocked Charrannosaurus. Electricity surged through the monster, but the attack did little to no damage.

"What the heck is this thing?!" Ebi yelled out, "I know it has to be a pokémon, but it just isn't!"

"It's because the thing's NOT a pokémon!" Ash yelled, pulling out some more pokéballs, "Not a natural one anyways!"

"Careful!" Tracey yelled

Ash threw the pokéballs, "Thanks to the pokédex overriding the six pokémon limit I can use a lot of them! But using a ton of pokémon in a single battle is hard even for a champion! With any luck I might actually be able to use the ultimate technique today! GO!" Ash released Bulbasaur, Bayleef, Totodile, Squirtle, Charizard, Cyndaquil, Heracross, Noctowl and Pidgeot. "This is thick dead woods! Be careful with the flames Charizard and Cyndaquil!"

"Either way, defeat it now and learn about it later!" Brock released Onix, Geodude, Crobat and Pineco

"Staryu! Starmie! Politoed! Corsola! GO!" Misty released her four main fighters

"Two of my pokémon are for searching pokémon, and I may only have one decent fighter, but we need as many as we can get! GO!" Tracey released Maril, Vennonat and Scyther

"Man… I've got to get a pokémon…" Ebi sighed

"We don't know how strong the thing is, so be careful!" Ash commanded his pokémon "Use the same strategy we used on Tyranitar!"

Each one of Ash's pokémon fired an attack at Charrannosaurus. The Kaiser Beast stretched his wings forwards and covered the front of his body, shielding his face and body from the attacks. The attacks left several mark on the wings, but didn't do much damage. Charrannosaurus folded his wings as he straightened up and opened his mouth, "GHROOOOOAAAR!" Charrannosaurus attacked! It opened it's mouth and fired a dragon rage. Charizard countered it with his Fire Blast attack, and both attacks exploded in the air.

"That was a dragon rage!" Ebi exclaimed, "It's so powerful…! Don't let it hit you!"

"TOTODILE! PIKACHU! HYDROTHUNDER!! Charizard, FIRE BLAST! USE SOLAR BEAM BULBASAUR! RAZOR LEAF BAYLEEF! HYDRO PUMP HIM SQUIRTLE! USE RAZOR WIND PIDGEOT! YOU TOO NOCTOWL" Ash then dropped to his knees and gasped for air. "(wheeze) this is why… (wheeze) I don't like using… (gasp) so many pokémon at once…" he sweatdropped

"Fortunately I don't have to worry about that problem! ICE PILLAR!" Misty commanded. Both Staryu, Starmie and Corsola combined their water guns, and Politoed using blizzard, the pillar was extra large and heavier.

"ROCK SLIDE!" Brock commanded, Onix and Geodude both used their attacks

"WATER GUN!" Tracey yelled, and Marril fired a jet of water.

Charrannosaurus opened his mouth and fired a wave of flames, overlapping all of the attacks launched at him and erasing them all. That wasn't all. All the pokémon as well as humans bolted to the sides away from the pillar of flames. The fire tore through the trees and burned everything to ashes

"WA!" Ash exclaimed as the fire burned everything in its path, "DAMMIT! (wheeze) I did all that yelling for nothing!"

"I can't believe it!" Brock yelled

"Incredible! Its flames are hot enough to burn up anything and reduce them to ashes instantly! At least that way the flames won't spread, but that means it'll be even more dangerous to us!" Exclaimed Ebi

Charrannosaurus growled and opened its mouth again to launch flames, but Charizard swooped forwards and slashed Charrannosaurus in the face before it could do anything and stopping its attack. All the water pokémon then fired their water attacks straight into Charrannosaurus's mouth, right down his throat, dealing damage as well as causing him to choke and give the opening for another round of attacks.

"Quick Squirtle! Hit the Tail Flame with everything you got!" Ash pointed at the tail flame. Squirtle shot a Hydro Pump straight at the flame on the end of the Kaiser Beast's tail. The water evaporated immediately, but the flame flickered and weakened a little. "Any pokémon of the 'Char' family, the size of the tail flame determines the firepower and a sign of living! If we eliminate the flame, it might be strong enough to survive, but too weak to fight until its flame is rekindled!"

Charrannosaurus growled, enraged that they tried to attack his flame. The Kaiser Beast growled and charged forwards "SPLIT UP!" Misty shouted. The group barely missed the Kaiser Beast's stomp attack. Usually that move wouldn't be that dangerous, but against a fifteen-foot tall dinosaur that looked heavier than a Snorlax, that move could be lethal.

"His ranged attacks are strong and fast. But something that specializes at ranged combat doesn't do nearly as well at close fighting! His melee fighting's slow, so get in there close and personal, and kick his butt! SKULL BASH! TAKE DOWN! SLASH! SKY ATTACK!" Pikachu and Squirtle soared through the air, ready to slam into Kaiser Beast with their heads, but with his wing on the left, he slapped Pikachu and Squirtle out of the air. Bulbasaur, Bayleef and Cyndaquil dashed forwards, also attempting to tackle him, but he smacked the plant pokémon with his tail. Charizard and Totodile bolted forwards and took a swipe at the Kaiser Beast, but Charrannosaurus struck first and slashed both of them. Noctowl and Pidgeot shot through the air at a rapid speed, but Charrannosaurus flapped his wings, creating a wind strong enough to slow them down, and give him the opportunity to slam Pidgeot and Noctowl to the ground. Ash's strongest fighters were sent flying with one hit each! "No go! The thing's too strong to fight up close, and too powerful to hurt from afar!" Ash yelled.

Charizard got up. He refused to go down in one hit! Not after he has been training so hard! Even though his opponent was nearly three times larger than him and far stronger, size doesn't matter! He's smaller than any other Charizard at Charicific valley, but he trained hard enough to become stronger than any of them! "CHROAAR!" Charizard slashed at the Kaiser Beast's face, but Charrannosaurus caught that arm in his hand. Charizard slashed with the other, but the giant Kaiser Beast caught that one as well. Charizard didn't like losing, and hated giving up even more. Charizard blasted flames at Charrannosaurus's eyes. Charrannosaurus roared in pain and let go of Charizard, giving him the opportunity he needed to strike with several scratches and slashes at the head and neck, and Pikachu and the other pokémon joined in to attack the Kaiser Beast. Charrannosaurus opened his eyes. He was a fire type, so the flames wouldn't blind him, but they did hurt. Charrannosaurus manages to slash Charizard, him being the largest target out of all those puny pokémon, but one hit isn't enough to take him down. Charizard's eyes flashed with a leer attack, throwing the mighty Charrannosaurus off balance and giving them the opening they needed.

"HYDRO THUNDER!" Ash yelled. Squirtle and Pikachu fired the electrified water, dealing water damage and paralysing Charrannosaurus. "EVERYONE! ATTACK!"

"WATER GUN!"

"SOLAR BEAM!"

"FURY SWIPES!"

"ROCK SLIDE!"

Staryu, Starmie, Maril, Bulbasaur, Scyther, Geodude and Onix all attacked, but Charrannosaurus covered itself with its wings and was shielded from the round of attacks

"Uh… okay… try that again" Ash sweatdropped.

"Fine then!" said Misty, "Let's combine our water attacks to make a strong one enough to give this Kaiser Beast something to cry about!"

"All right!" Ash pointed at Charrannosaurus, "All water pokémon, use the strongest water attack you've got! And make it into a HydroThunder with your electricity Pikachu!"

The powerful jet of water flew from Squirtle's Hydro pump, combined with heck a load of water guns from the other pokémon. Pikachu electrified it with his thunder, and the electrified water went straight for the Kaiser Beast.

Charrannosaurus roared and opened his mouth. Blazing Flames flew out of his mouth and overlapped the water, reducing it into nothing but harmless steam.

"AGH! The thing's… too strong!" Ash backed off

"ONIX! ATTACK NOW!" Brock shouted, and Onix bolted forwards and attacked the Kaiser Beast

Charrannosaurus straightened up and grabbed Onix by the horn and swung him to the ground. He didn't stop there. He continued to swing Onix through the air in circles, slamming Squirtle, Pikachu and the rest of the water pokémon, taking a huge chunk of HP out of them. Crobat and Geodude both charged forwards to attack, but Charrannosaurus slammed Onix into them and sent them flying.

"How are we supposed to fight something that's too strong, skilled and powerful!?" Tracey yelled

Brock smiled, "Sometimes one has to suffer for the greater good, also because some of the really good things requires a lot of pain! And I figured out it's weak point! Even though he has a lot of HP, he has to be on the defensive half the time! That's the only way he can last so long! If doesn't let itself get hit, he's a much tougher opponent! But he can't defend or counter when its on the offensive, that's why I told Onix to use the bide attack!"

_Bide! This attack takes several turns to use, and is very risky. The pokémon who uses it will take a lot of damage from it's opponent for several turns, and will deal double the damage it received!_

The Kaiser Beast swung Onix to the ground, but Onix broke free of the grip. Onix roared out loud and bolted forwards at an amazing speed. Before Charrannosaurus could defend or anything, Onix rammed head-on into his face and dealt double the damage he had received. Charrannosaurus stumbled back a few steps. He was staggering and dizzy. The attack knocked him senseless.

"ICE PILLAR!" Ash and Misty called the attack. All the water pokémon fired a water attack, and Politoed froze it. The solid pillar smashed into the side of Charrannosaurus's head, dealing even more damage. Charrannosaurus shook its head and all the dizziness out. Under Red Kaiser's orders he had fought a lot of trainers, and attacked even bigger groups than this, but never has he faced people this strong! He growled, he was a Kaiser Beast! A superior form of evolution and a higher creature! His strength level was superior and his HP was in the thousands! He can't let himself be beaten by a bunch of kids and those puny little pokémon!

"Whoa! He's come back to his senses! And he looks mad!" Ebi sweatdropped,

"I'm on it!" Ash and Misty yelled at the same time and both pointed at Charrannosaurus "ICE PILLAR! MAKE IT THE LARGEST PILLAR POSSIBLE!"

Each of the water pokémon fired as much water possible, and Politoed was sweating from the strain of having to freeze that much water at once, but he knew Ash and Misty had a plan.

"GROOAAAR!" Charrannosaurus fired flames at the giant pillar of ice. The heat of the flames did melt the ice, but the pillar was too big and created too much water to be melted in a single flash "ROWR!" Charrannosaurus roared as the water from the melted pillar splashed all over his face.

"OH YEAH!" Ash and Misty high-fived each other, "Like you said Brock, he can't defend and attack all at once!" They both gave him thumbs-up

"By now with all those hard hits he's taken, a few more rounds of attacks will take him down! Everyone attack!"

"GRRR…" Charrannosaurus growled. As the attacks flew towards, him, he straightened up into the right posture and took all the hits

"HM?!" Brock recognized that posture! Even though it was different from Onix's, and Charrannosaurus was doing it! "NO! HE'S USING BIDE!"

"WA!" Ash exclaimed. All of the moves were projectiles, so they couldn't stop them! Charrannosaurus had several thousand HP left, so just one round of attacks won't do the job! The damage from the round of attacks could take down almost any normal pokémon, and it'll deal double the damage when hit!

"CHROAAAAAR!" Charrannosaurus attacked! Usually a bide would be one powerful hit, but when divided among a lot of pokémon, he attacked in a frenzy of slashing and biting. Pidgeot tried to attack with Sky attack, but Charrannosaurus concentrated more energy into his tail flame, causing the fire to grow. Charrannosaurus then spun around and slammed Pidgeot with the tip of his flaming tail and setting his feathery body on fire. Charrannosaurus then concentrated the rest of the bide attack energy and broke into a powerful charge and smashed his way through the troop of pokémon. After smashing his way through them, he made it to the human trainers.

"AAAAAAH!" All of them screamed as Charrannosaurus roared at their faces, but Ash looked relatively fine. He was even smiling!

"Okay Ebi… time to test the Nitro Ball you gave me…" Ash smirked, pulling out the explosive… "Nitro Ball GO!" Ash hurled the ball into the Kaiser Beast's mouth…

**BOOM!!!**

"GROAA!!!" The ball exploded as Charrannosaurus closed his mouth over it. The Kaiser Beast gave a weak growl and collapsed to the ground.

"OH YEAH!" Ash cheered and struck a pose, "I am the man! I am the master! I am SOOOOOO good!"

"Wow! The Nitro Ball worked better than I thought! I really oughta make more of those things!" Ebi smiled, "Even I didn't know they were that strong!"

"WATCH OUT! CHARRANNOSAURUS'S GETTING UP!"

Charrannosaurus growled, lots of his fangs have been chipped and fallen out, and his jaws were nearly broken from the shock of the explosion in his mouth

"GROAR!" Charrannosaurus roared, jumped into the air and stomped the ground, creating an earthquake attack

"PIKAAA!"

"WA!"

"YOW!"

The earthquake sent a shockwave through the ground, throwing everyone back. The flyers weren't affected by the move, so Charrannosaurus dashed forwards and attacked in frenzy with his fury attack, taking out all the flying types.

"WA! We may have roughed him up a bit, but he's still got more HP than we have combined!" Ash backed off, "Uh, Ebi! Do you have any more Nitro Balls?"

"No! That one I gave you was the prototype! It was still really dangerous and unstable, and could've blown up any time, so I let you carry it for me!"

"Uh-huh… You saying I was your test rat for a dangerous explosive?" Ash growled

"Uh… eh-heh-heh… yeah" Ebi sweatdropped and backed off nervously

"ROAR!" all the pokémon kept firing their attacks at Charrannosaurus, but the Kaiser Beast kept on blasting them into nothing

"Charrannosaurus is still fresh and got plenty of HP compared to our guys! We're running low on energy and won't be able to attack soon!" Ash spoke to himself. Ash remembered training the pokémon to do it.

_-Thunder! Hydro Pump! Fire Blast! Solarbeam! These attacks flew through the air towards the target. About halfway, Ebi could see it breaking up. Right before it hit the boulder, the elements broke up and flew in different directions. Not one piece of it hit the target "At close range, the attacks do hit, but don't join together! At long range, it breaks up in different directions without even hitting its target!" Ash complained-_

"Every single attempt to use the ultimate attack has failed!" Said Ash, remembering when he trained his pokémon to do it. One after the other, for over a hundred attempts it has failed him, "Even in the most desperate of situations!"

_-While the powerful beam containing three hyper beams and a bit of each earthly element, it was still an incomplete move without the necessary techniques, and it was going against the inner energy of a Super Fiend. Also, the attack was new, but the Terror of the Deep was practiced for years. The new attack was starting to fall apart… "No! HOLD TOGETHER!" Ash screamed. The beam was breaking "NOOO!" Ash yelled, but too late… each element flew in each direction "WAAAA!" **KABOOM! **Pikachu, Totodile, Cyndaquil, Tauros, Kingler and Snorlax got hurt and collapsed… and even though Ash wasn't hit directly by the Terror of the Deep beam, the explosion sent him flying-_

"And then there's the name issue! People say names aren't important, but for something like this it is!" Ash growled. Charrannosaurus opened his mouth and fired another attack. The pokémon had no choice but to run and evade it. "The attack! It's all of us fighting together as a team! As one! Charrannosaurus…" He looked at the Kaiser Beast, "A creature this strong, this evil…" He clenched his fists, "SHOULD NOT EXIST!" Ash pointed at Charrannosaurus, "PIKACHU! SQUIRTLE! BULBASAUR! CHARIZARD! GET INTO FORMATION!" Pikachu, Squirtle, Bulbasaur and Charizard lined up in position "We attack as one! We fight together, with our hearts, our hopes, joined together in our unity! ATTACK WITH THE UNISTRIKE!"

"Pi… ka… CHUUUUUU!"

"Bul… ba… SAAAAUR!"

"Squir… TEEEEEEL!"

"Chr… ROOOAAAAR!"

The four elements flew through the air, each in perfect balance, carrying the powers of earth, water, fire and wind, and fusing together into a single base element… the powerful elemental foundation and the ultimate pokémon technique!

"CHROAAAAAAR!" Charrannosaurus fired the strongest fire blast it had ever used in its life. The two attacks collided head on… the blazing fire from Charrannosaurus and the beam of true unity from the pokémon.

"Heh…" Ash smiled, "It's working… and the best part is that Charrannosaurus doesn't even know the best part out of this attack!" The fire shrunk and the beam grew. "This beam is based on worldly elements, and attacks like fire will only make in stronger!" The UniStrike beam absorbed the blazing flames completely and grew in size and power! Charrannosaurus only had enough time to see the flash of the beam right before it made contact. Charrannosaurus, the Kaiser Beast was completely vaporized by the beam!

The dust cleared, more likely the dust of the what should have been the remains of Charrannosaurus if he wasn't completely vaporized by the attack. Ash sighed for a moment. Whatever they had fought, it wasn't a pokémon, not even a clone like Mewtwo. It was just something programmed to kill, and they have ended its threat.

"YEEEES! YES!" Ash cheered, "THE ULTIMATE ATTACK HAS BEEN MASTERED!" It was only a few seconds before Misty, Brock, Tracey and Ebi joined in the cheering.

From the treetops, they were being watched, "Aiya…!" Red Kaiser gasped, "I can't believe Kaiser Beast is destroyed… How is this possible!!" he growled, "They insult us… they will pay…" slowly, his hand moved, gripping the handle of his sword. The Kaiser Beast itself was strong… but Red Kaiser himself was far stronger. He would teach these kids the true meaning of terror…! (**BEEPBEEPBEEP**) there was a ringing sound… it was a summon to return to base… "I have to go… report this to master…" he growled, "I go now… but next time… Ash Ketchum… I kill!" and with that, he disappeared into the darkness…

From another tree branch, another sword carrying, cloak-wearing individual was watching them, "Congratulations…" Sky Render leaned against the tree, "It's been fun watching you train and defeat that Kaiser Beast. You have my deepest respect" He smiled, "But just because I respect you doesn't change the fact that we will fight again, but not today…" He jumped down from the tree branch and walked into the darkness, his white mantle blowing in the wind. "Grow strong… Ash Ketchum."

"Hmmm?" Ash looked in that direction as the wind blew

"What is it Ash?" Asked Misty

"Oh… nothing, just the wind…" Ash smiled. He knew Sky Render was there. Even though they were enemies, that Sky was an honourable one, and Ash was eagerly awaiting the day…when they could fight as equals…

_Today has been amazing. Not only have they beaten the Kaiser Beast Charrannosaurus, Ash has mastered the UniStrike! This ultimate attack will surely come in handy in the future, especially against the Missingno Gang they'll be fighting when they reach Scarlet City! But who is this Red Kaiser? And who does he work for? Find out next time, on Pokémon: Ultimate Adventures!_

(TO BE CONTINUED)


	14. Return to Scarlet

Chapter 14- Return to Scarlet

_No matter how many times I think about how I got myself into this mess, I just can't stop being amazed. How it all started that night in Scarlet City… meeting Ebi, and how drastically things have escalated since then. From fighting common punks and Team Rocket, up to hideous monsters and impossibly strong human beings! There was just so many things in this world I wasn't aware of… like humans stronger than pokémon… that's something I never thought possible. Those people who have attained such incredible powers through countless battles…and the man named Sky Render, who has been deemed the strongest in the world. But there's something else that worries me other than the Super Fiends or the Missingno Gang… the strange man we saw in the forest, Red Kaiser. That monster he unleashed, the Kaiser Beast, was really powerful, and if it weren't for the UniStrike, we wouldn't have survived. If anything, he is an even greater mystery than the Fiends. As soon as I am done with the Missingno gang, hopefully I can discover more about him, who he works for, and what his true purpose is…_

_-Ash Ketchum_

(Location- ???)

"So the experimental Kaiser Beast has been destroyed?" His face was hidden in the darkness, and the only thing that could be seen is his silhouette. "And you say it wasn't Sky Render who was responsible?"

"Yes my lord… one who destroy Kaiser Beast no Super Fiend, but young Pokémon Trainer" Red Kaiser kneeled to the ground and faced the floor, "I no kill him, but come tell you instead… find out if we want to recruit him."

"Hmm… no…" the man shook his head, and stepped from the shadows, revealing himself. Dressed in dark coloured robes, an ancient crown atop his head and a long white beard, he resembled nothing less than a venerable, ancient king. He also wore the same emblem as Red Kaiser, of a chained sword surrounded by a ring of flames. "People like him, no matter how skilled, if opposed to the creation of living weapons, they are useless to us… and could only hold us back." He shook his head. "I am quite pleased that you told me immediately about the destruction of the experimental Kaiser Beast… this tells us that we need to make them stronger…" He looked back at Red Kaiser, "You are dismissed, my faithful knight."

"Hmm." Red Kaiser bowed his head, and stepped back, vanishing into the darkness…

(Location- Scarlet City)

"Your pokémon have all been healed." Said Nurse Joy, handing Ash a tray that held both his and Misty's pokéballs. "Enjoy your stay in Scarlet City, we hope to see you again!" she smiled and gave a courteous little bow

"Thank you Nurse Joy" Ash replied, taking his pokéballs and attaching them to his belt, while Pikachu hopped onto his shoulder. "You feeling all right buddy?"

"Pika!" Pikachu nodded happily

"That's great!" Ash smiled happily, and walked carrying Misty's pokéballs in his hands. She was sitting by herself on a sofa, and he went and joined her, "Here, our pokémon are all healed."

"Thanks Ash" Misty smiled, accepting the pokéballs. "Let's get going."

After the battle against the Kaiser Beast back in the forest, most of their pokémon were either injured or exhausted, and it was important that they had them healed, especially because there was another battle that would soon be taking place…

"Hmmm…" Ash sighed as he and Misty exited the pokémon centre.

"What's wrong?" asked Misty

"Things have change a lot since we last came here…" Ash answered, looking around. "The pokémon centre was a lively place, full of trainers. But now… with the exception of us and Nurse Joy, it's practically deserted. And I'll bet I know who's responsible"

"I know what you mean…" Misty nodded. Ebi had warned them not to walk outside alone, and she understood what he meant. The streets were empty, the shops were closed, and it was as if people were too afraid to even go outside anymore… "It's no wonder everyone's afraid. Even without the Super Fiends backing them up anymore, the Missingno gang's grown too strong even for the police to handle…"

"That's where I come in…" Ash smirked, clenching his fist. "By tomorrow, the people of this city won't have anything left to fear… I'll make sure of it."

"Oooooh, scary…" Misty laughed a little

"Wa?" Ash blinked, "What's so funny?"

"Nothing, just for a second there, you actually seemed cool!" Misty giggled

"Oh… thanks…" Ash said sheepishly, rubbing the back off his head… "Hey, wait a second! What did you mean by that? I'm always cool!"

"Yeah right! Only in your dreams, Mr. Pokémon Master!" Misty laughed, "Aw, come on, don't be like that, I was kidding!" she said reassuringly, seeing Ash's expression. "You're dependable and cool, and I always feel safer when you're with me." She smiled warmly, "I really like having you around"

"Uh…" Ash's face went extremely red, seeing the warm smile she gave him, and her statement right there… "Well… I… um…" he didn't really know what to say. "(_Calm down Ash, it's just Misty. You know? MISTY! That loud, scary, uncute girl?_)" Ash blinked, looking at her face, "(_Well… I guess she is just a little cute…_)" he thought to himself, although he didn't DARE say that out loud… "Um… I… I like having you around too!" he said, Misty reacted similar to him…

Slowly, looking up innocently without saying anything, they both reached out their hands and held each other's… their faces bright red… The two of them smiled shyly as they walked, holding each other's hand…

"Hmm…" Ash suddenly stopped walking, his expression changed to a serious one

"What is it Ash?" asked Misty, "Ah…!" she gasped at what she saw

"Well, well, well… look who's back. And look! He's even brought his girlfriend!" A group of familiar faces stood in front of Ash and Misty. The same group of nameless guys, whom Ash had simply labelled as Punk A, Punk B, Brass Knuckles punk, Chain punk, Two-by-four punk and Metal Pipe Punk, "So you come to grace us with your presence again?" asked Punk A

"Oh, it's just you guys…" Ash's serious expression changed to a relaxed one

"What is that supposed to mean?!" The six of them shouted

"Ash, do you know these people?" asked Misty

"Nah, just some random thugs I stepped on when we first got here" replied Ash, grabbing Misty's hand and walking off, "Come on, let's go…"

"Where do you think you're going?!" They shouted. Suddenly, Ash and Misty stopped, as more people emerged from the alleyways. All these tough-looking teenage delinquents, many of them carrying weapons, some of them had pokéballs. There were about twenty of them, and surrounded Ash and Misty. "This won't be like last time! This is payback!"

"This is what you call payback?" Ash looked left and right, obviously unimpressed. Calmly, he let go of Misty's hand and let Pikachu down from his shoulder. "Hey, Pikachu. I'll handle this myself, so sit this one out, okay?" He asked

'He's not even gonna use a pokémon?!' 'Hey, look at that, he wants to fight us himself!' 'What an idiot!' All these comments were heard all around, many of them were laughing at Ash.

"I may have pokémon, but to call them out on garbage like you is disgrace to the true meaning of being a Pokémon Trainer." Ash said, cracking his knuckles. "But I suppose you're right about one thing… this isn't gonna be at all like the last time. This time, you're not the only one I'll beat into the ground with my fists, and I'll do it all myself." He spoke, glaring a Punk A… suddenly, without warning, a delinquent with a baseball bat came from the side and swung it down at his head…

**SMACK!!!**

"AAAH!!!" the guy who attacked Ash screamed when his bat was smashed to pieces and he was suddenly sent flying, right off the ground and hit the wall. "Ugh…" a weak groan escaped his lips as he fell, out cold.

"WHAT?!" Everyone gasped, all eyes were on Ash

Ash stood there, holding out his fist. Just one punch broke his weapon and sent him flying. He then took a fighting stance "Time to teach you all some manners…"

(Meanwhile)

"All right! Hyper potions, check! Revives, check! full heals… check!" Brock was checking through the inventory. There was going to be a battle, so it was important to have a lot of items in case of emergency

"Done!" Ebi smiled triumphantly, looking at the two objects sitting on his desk. One of them was Ash's pokémon league cap, fully repaired and looking brand new. "And more importantly… the QuickSilver" Ebi looked at the weapon. "Heh, quite impressive if I do say so myself. For the coming battles in the near future, these upgrades will make a world of difference!" He smiled, but then stopped. Usually, Ash would be pestering him by now, all excited about having his cap repaired and Quicksilver upgraded… but that wasn't the case… "He and Misty should have gotten back from the Centre by now… where are they?"

"GUYS!!!" Tracey suddenly burst into the room, getting their attention, "We got trouble! Ash is fighting in the streets! He's being attacked by a whole mob!"

"What?!" Brock and Ebi exclaimed. Immediately, Brock threw all the items into a bag and bolted out of the room, while Ebi snatched both the cap and QuickSilver in his arms and ran, the two of them following Tracey, outside the building and into the streets… "AH…!" Ebi, Brock and Tracey gasped at what they saw…

"HA!!!" Ash shouted, swinging his fist upward and uppercutting one of the Missingno Gang members, knocking him clean off his feet and hitting the ground. Ash didn't stop there, as another one attacked him from the side, he quickly spun around and kicked him across the face, sending him flying into a group who were charging at him from the other direction! Many of these punks were down, too injured to fight, while Ash however didn't have so much as a scratch and showed absolutely no sign of fatigue! "HAAA!!!" He roared and slammed more into the air…

"Ah…!" Brock and Tracey's jaws hung wide open… Ash… the SAME Ash they knew, he alone had trashed over twenty men, without the use of a pokémon, and didn't even break a sweat?! "How could anyone be so strong?!"

"A… Ash…" Misty wasn't as shocked as Brock and Tracey, but was impressed. This was her first time as well, seeing Ash fight like this. "Ah!" she gasped, when she saw, one of the people who lay defeated behind Ash, suddenly sprung up with a knife in his hand…! "ASH! WATCH OUT!!!"

"HM!!!" Even before Misty had shouted, Ash had already spun around and caught the guy's wrist, stopping the knife from coming any closer.

"Agh…!" the punk growled, trying to push his arm forward, but he couldn't… Ash's grip was so strong, he couldn't even move!

"You really tried to kill me just now… and you thought you can do it because my back was turned, didn't you?" Ash asked. As he spoke, he tightened his grip even harder, causing the man to scream out in pain and fall to his knees, dropping the weapon. Ash threw him aside, letting him hit the ground. The man's arm was now dark and badly bruised, with the imprints of Ash's hand. "Now you're scared all of the sudden?" Ash leaned down to him when he saw the man's look of fear "Let me tell you one thing… if you're ready to kill someone with a weapon… you'd better be ready to die by one too." The man passed out from fear

"He's… a m-monster!" One of the remaining punks gasped… "AH!" he screamed, nearly wetting himself when Ash was looking his way!

"You… I know some of you are pokémon trainers… I can see the pokéballs" Ash spoke in a serious tone, "Put them gently on the ground, and get out of my sight."

"O… okay…!" they immediately did as they were told, gently placing all their pokéballs in a neat pile. "L… let's get out of here!!!" they all fled in terror, dragging with them their injured companions

"W… whoa…" Ash's friends gasped… "ASH!!!" they all ran towards him

"Huh?" Ash turned around, "WA!!!" he exclaimed as he was suddenly surrounded

"That was amazing!!! Absolutely incredible!!!" Brock shouted

"Since when were you that strong?! I've never seen anything like that!!" said Tracey

"Ash! Are you hurt anywhere?!" Misty asked out of concern

"Weren't you watching him at all Misty? Of course he isn't hurt!"

"Weren't ANY of you watching him at all these past weeks?" Ebi spoke up, and everyone turned to him. Unlike the others, he didn't seem surprised with Ash's strength. "With every fight he's engaged in, whether he won or lost, Ash just kept getting stronger. We're talking about someone who's fought the Super Fiends time and time again, defeating Aquamarine and was even acknowledged by Sky Render as a serious opponent. At that level, normal people can't even touch you."

"Oro?" Ash blinked, clueless

"Tch, same old Ash…" Ebi closed his eyes and shook his head, smiling, "After the beating you gave them, I'm pretty sure they're gonna behave from here on."

"One thing bothers me" said Brock, "Why did you tell them to leave their pokéballs?"

"It's simple. Watch" Ash answered, walking over to the pile of pokéballs and picked them up in his arms, "EVERYBODY! GO!!!" He threw them all, releasing dozens of pokémon. "All right! Any of you who wants to get out of here, do it now! You're free to go!" he called out. The pokémon all shouted out in confirmation, and ran/flew off in different directions, leaving the city "Heh. I thought so…" Ash smiled, while everyone looked at him, confused. "You noticed that I was addressing to those 'who wants to get out of there' to leave, and naturally they all chose freedom."

"But how did you know they all agreed? What if some of them attacked you for hurting their trainers?" asked Tracey

"Are you kidding? They'd have to actually LIKE their trainers before they do that!" Ash laughed, "I've battled Trainers from this gang plenty of times, and every time, I saw how unhappy the pokémon were. I mean, who wouldn't be? They probably don't take care of them, and only use them as weapons to attack people and commit all-their crimes. When you stop and think about it, it's pretty obvious those pokémon can't stand their trainers!" he laughed, while the others stared in amazement…

"Ahem…" Ebi cleared his throat, and approached Ash, "Here. I believe this is yours."

"Oh, sweet! My cap!" Ash exclaimed, immediately accepting it and putting it on his head, "That's better! I can never get used to walking around without a cap! Seriously, I feel naked without it!"

"Have I ever let you down?" Ebi smiled proudly, "Also, I've installed something new to your QuickSilver. Take a look…" he opened it up, and showed Ash the insides. In the compartment where he always got the pester balls was a new kind of pokéball transporter. "I've removed the Pester balls, and upgraded you to nitro. I've also installed a retractable shooter, so you can fire them directly from the QuickSilver"

"Whoa…" Ash gasped, looking at his new weapons. "But wait a minute… they're explosive, right? Won't it be dangerous if I'm carrying them around inside the QuickSilver while using it as a shield? It won't explode, will it?"

"No worries. The nitro balls have a failsafe system that doesn't allow them to activate as long as they're inside the QuickSilver." Ebi explained, picking up the QuickSilver, "There's also a nitro ball compartment hooked up to the boosters, so now you've got Nitro Boost! When the keywords are mentioned, you will gain a massive burst of speed, far surpassing the normal maximum, though only for a second. The key words are…" Ebi then leaned and whispered into Ash's ear

"Silver bullet?" Ash said out loud

"URK!" Ebi exclaimed. The second Ash said _Silver Bullet_, the boosters on the QuickSilver flared and shot out of Ebi's arms…

"GYAAA!" Brock screamed and dove to the side, as the board crashed right into a wall, leaving a massive crack.

"Yeah… and you might wanna be careful about saying the words indoors…" Ebi sweatdropped, "Along with the Nitro balls, I've installed a new kind of pokéball… I call it EC Ball… for Element Capture" He handed to Ash a pokéball with no colour, just a mirrored surface, "These special pokéballs are for attacking and defending only. They are useless of capturing pokémon, but if they hit any elemental attack you throw them at, they'll capture it. You can then either throw the ball like a grenade to release the contained attack, or even fire it from the QuickSilver. The EC balls can capture almost any attack, like fire blast or Hydro Pump for instance, or maybe even HydroThunder, but remember there's a limit to the strength that it can contain, so don't try capturing attacks like UniStrike. Got that?

"Wow Ebi, that's great! You've certainly outdone yourself this time!"

"I certainly have…" Ebi turned around, "(_He may not realize it yet, but I've added one more thing to this weapon… a power that surpasses by anything in this world. This won't work for just anybody, only a true Chosen One. I know you acted the role during Shamouti's year's festival, but it was just a mere tourist attraction, and you were the only trainer around. You may have met legendary pokémon, but plenty of trainers have come across them. My only purpose of meeting you was to give you this power… and unless you really are the one, everything I have done was a complete waste of time, for only the Chosen One will wield the_ '_Power of One'_…)"

"Ebi? HEY EBI!" Ash called, snapping him back to reality…

"Sorry, I kinda zoned out back there…" Ebi apologised and turned around away from Ash "(_This power cannot be wielded by anyone but a true Chosen one. I've watched as you continued to fight and grow at an amazing pace, and I am certain that it's you. If you think it's just some gadget I made up myself just to help you beat a bunch of punks, then you're wrong… dead wrong… If you can't use it Ash Ketchum, then all my efforts will have been wasted, and I must once again begin my search, for the one who can wield this power… the power that will change the very world…_)"

"EBI!" Ash snapped him back to attention, "Weren't you listening? I said we don't know the location of the Missingno gang's base. Not to mention there's a ton of Team Rocket agents wandering about! We can't go walking around the whole city looking for trouble!"

"(_Interrupting my monologues like that… that kid's got no concept of dramatic suspense_)" Ebi grumbled silently. "I've been digging around town for information, and got a tip on the Gang's location. It's on the West side of town, a rough area. If we're willing to go there, we'd best be prepared."

"I'm ready if you are, Ash" said Misty

"We're good to go!" Said Brock and Tracey

"I'm also prepared for battle" replied Ebi

"But Ebi… you don't fight" said Brock

"… … … … shut up!" Ebi snapped at him

"All right then, let's go!" Everyone nodded in affirmation and started walking, with Ash leading the way.

"Hey Ash," said Misty as she walked next to him, "You know… back there, when you fought those guys and freed the pokémon… you really were cool!"

"Thanks, that really means a lot, coming from you" Ash smiled

"I was right to feel safer having you around" she smiled at him, "You'll always be around to protect us, right?"

"Of course! You can depend on it!" Ash grinned, holding her hand.

"Hmm…" Ebi, Tracey and Brock smirked as they watched Ash and Misty in front of them, chatting happily, laughing together while holding each other's hand. They knew for a long time that they were attracted to each other, and after spending all this time concentrating on fighting, seeing the two like this really lifted their spirits…

(Location- Scarlet City West)

The group was walking down the empty streets, led by Ash who was holding a piece of paper. The place they were in was definitely not a safe looking area. All these dirty buildings boarded up, graffiti over the walls, trash cans spilled over…

"This certainly looks like the type of place we'd find them…" Brock commented, looking around. Everyone was keeping a watchful eye, walking around in this area made them feel very uneasy…

"We're in a dangerous district… even without the Missingno Gang running around I'd avoid coming to places like this…" Said Ebi

"Come on guys, nothing to fear. We've been to places worse than this, and plus I'm stronger than anyone you'll find running around here!" Ash grinned. Suddenly, Pikachu's ears rose up, sensing trouble. "Huh? What's wrong Pikachu?"

"Pika-Pika!" Pikachu's cheeks started crackling

"What is it Ash?"

"Pikachu says it's trouble!" Ash answered, reaching for the QuickSilver…

**CRASH!**

"AAAAH!!!"

"HUH?!" The group turned around and gasped, seeing punks from the Missingno Gang, the same guys who attacked Ash earlier, flying through the air and hitting the ground, landing in a large pile. "What the…?!"

"Stupid punks… picking a fight with ME of all people…" a lone figured stepped into the scene, and any questions the group would've had about what happened to those people were immediately answered, "Hmm?" Cleft looked up, noticing Ash

"You!" Ash immediately moved in front of his group and stood protectively, equipping the QuickSilver and placing one hand over his belt, while Pikachu jumped down from his shoulders and electricity gathered at his cheeks …

"Oh, it's you again" The Super Fiend grumbled as he continued limping, his left hand pressed against the wall for support. "What do you want?"

"I should be asking the same question!" Ash growled, taking a fighting stance. Although the man was still injured from the Kaiser Beast, Ash knew that Cleft was nothing like those punks. He was a real threat…

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you wanted to fight me right now…" Cleft glared seriously at Ash, not showing any weakness even in his condition. "I do hope your recent string of victories (a number of them being flukes no less) hasn't filled your head with delusions of invincibility…" his left hand clenched into a fist…

**CRRRACK!!!**

Everyone gasped, when Cleft punched a hole into the brick wall! "You really want to fight me?" said Cleft, ripping a chunk out and crushing it with his bare hands, dropping the bits to the ground. Ash growled, but tried to remain calm. This man wasn't lying about his strength, especially with that group of punks he had totally decimated in even less time than Ash. However, Cleft dropped his shoulders and casually shrugged, "No… I'm going looking for a fight. If I was, I would've attacked you by now." Placing his hands in his pockets, he walked right past the group. "I'm just taking a walk, to clear my head… Except those stupid gang members keep popping up everywhere, it's like a bloody infestation!"

"We're actually trying to get rid of the gang" Ash spoke, lowering his arms, positive that Cleft wasn't gonna attack him.

"Oh really?" Cleft raised an eyebrow, "You'd certainly be doing everyone a favour. I'm a wanted criminal, and even I don't like them. Come to think of it, the only reason you guys are fighting my group is because of that gang…" he scratched the back of his head, "It was a big mistake for us, getting involved with them. We ended up tarnishing our records, associating with thugs that are clearly beneath us."

"Well, I guess we'll be going" said Ash, eyeing his group, which seemed eager to get away from the Fiend… for good reason.

"Hold it." Cleft spoke up, and Ash stopped. "There's something you should know before going after the gang. While the gang consists of average punks and third-rate pokémon trainers… their leader is different."

"Different? How?" Asked Tracey

"He's dangerous." Said Cleft, in a serious tone. "I've only met him once, but I can honestly say he's by far the strongest man this city's ever produced." He explained, "The Super Fiends first came to this city, hearing of that man's strength, we wanted to see if he was worth recruiting. He made the cut, but had no interest in joining (and to make things even sadder, we somehow wound up with Doppelganger instead). Just watch out for him, or you may wind up dead"

"Okay, and thanks for the information." Said Ash, as the group left the fiend… "Goodbye, I guess"

"Hmph…" Cleft crossed his arms and sighed. He and Ash's group were supposed to be enemies, through and through, but somehow he couldn't help but feel slightly concerned for the boy. "Probably Sky's interest in the kid, rubbing off on me…"

"So that's it? You're just gonna let them go ahead and have all the fun?" a voice spoke up…

"Huh?" Cleft turned around, "Bonsai!" he gasped, seeing his comrade standing right in next to him, "How… when did you get here!?"

"You blinked" Bonsai smirked, "I turn around for one second, and you end up in this sorry state." He eyed Cleft's wounds, "What happened? Ketchum do this to you?"

"Course not!" Cleft answered indignantly "No… it wasn't him… otherwise I'd be in much better shape. The one who attacked me… was the Red Kaiser."

"You're not serious?!" Bonsai shouted in disbelief, his relaxed expression suddenly changed, but Cleft nodded gravely… "Damn… if he's here… it means THEY already reached this region?!" he growled, clenching his fists tight…

"We have to go warn the others, and we have to get out of here soon, because now that _they _moved in, it won't be long till this whole region falls under their control." Cleft said seriously, "And I'm warning you Bonsai… and you'd better tell Ketchum too…" He spoke, "I tried to fight Red Kaiser… but what happened there couldn't have been called a fight, just a one-sided slaughter. Everything about him… his strength… his ruthlessness… his insanity… I was completely overwhelmed." Cleft growled… trembling at the memory, "After I was defeated, he left me for dead, to be food for the Kaiser Beast, which Ketchum and his friends were able to destroy. However… the Kaiser Beast was nothing but a pet, because the real monster was that man…" Cleft spoke seriously, with a panicked expression in his eyes, "Only a fool will try to fight that monster… If you ever encounter him, run, because to fight him will only mean death!"

"Hmm…" Bonsai stared at his companion. Cleft was an incredibly strong fighter, he's proven that many times over. But for him… a Super Fiend, to be so afraid of one man… this Red Kaiser must really be a monster. "Hmph… too bad for Ketchum though. Even if we told him this… let's face it. He's a proud idiot. He won't back down from a challenge. If anything, hearing about Red Kaiser will just make him stay here and even go looking for him. Ketchum may have grown strong… but with Red Kaiser involved, it will mean nothing when faced against that man…"

"Hmm… then are you thinking what I'm thinking?" asked Cleft

"Yeah…" Bonsai nodded. "The only way Ketchum will leave this city is when the Missingno Gang is defeated." They both smirked, "Let's lend him a hand, and speed up the battle!" The two of them nodded and ran off… but suddenly stopped, "Uh… where IS the gang's hideout anyways?"

(Meanwhile)

"Hello… what have we here?" Asked Ash, as the whole group stood in an alleyway.

"Team Rocket Agents?! What are they doing here?" Asked Misty, poking her head out of the alley and looking out in the streets. Standing out there in the open was Jessie, James and Meowth of Team Rocket. More than that, accompanying them were agents Cassidy and Butch, along with about a dozen masked grunts.

"Probably the same thing we are. Wiping out the Missingno Gang" said Ebi, "Rumour has it that Team Rocket's been going around, busting up all sorts of gangs and criminal organizations, and by the looks of it, the rumour's true"

"What, so you're saying Team Rocket's gone into crime fighting?" asked Brock

"Of course not!" answered Ebi, "No… they never act unless something was in it for them. The way they do things, is after beating whatever enemy they have, they make offers to join Team Rocket and are usually successful because Team Rocket can offer more than any other gang or organisation could. If anything… it's almost like they're trying to stamp out the competition, while getting as many recruits as possible. Why they're doing it… I have no idea…"

"Shh! They're moving in!" Ash raised his hand and they all stopped talking. All the Rockets moved on out of sight, leaving only Cassidy and Butch standing guard. "If what you say is true, then that means this is the Missingno Gang hideout!"

"Peh… why'd WE have to get stuck guarding an entrance while THOSE two clowns and their cat gets to go in and take out that gang?" Butch spat

"Because SOMEHOW, they've been getting stronger!" Cassidy answered bitterly. "I don't get it! The moment they become just a little LESS useless, they all of the sudden get all the good assignments…"

"To make matters worse, the boss is gonna chose someone to be the next 001! If either of them gets that title, we'll never live it down…!" (**BOOM!**) "AAAAAGH!!!!" They both screamed when an explosion sent them flying and hitting their heads. The two of them lay down, out cold.

"Whoa… these things are powerful!" Ash gasped, holding his QuickSilver arm out. Wearing it on his arm, he was able to fire a nitro ball and sent them flying. It was certainly a powerful weapon… "Let's go!"

(Location- Missingno Gang HQ)

"I knew the Missingno gang was strong, but I didn't think it'd be this big!" Ash gasped as they hid behind a bunch of crates

"POISON STING!" Jessie shouted. Arbok opened his mouth and fired hundreds of poison needles, taking down the enemy Fearow

"TOXIC ATTACK!" James yelled. Wheezing released poisonous sludge, poisoning the Flareon, followed by a Take-Down attack

"HA! YA!" Meowth jumped left and right, slashing across Hitmonlee's and Machamp's faces, taking them both down. "Heh…" Meowth looked up at his next opponent, which would prove to be a better challenge. "A Dragonite? And what would a rare pokémon like you be doing in a dump like this? MEOOWRTH!" Meowth screeched, jumped up to Dragonite's face and attacked wildly. Before long, Dragonite collapsed to the ground, defeated…

"URGH! There's too many of them!" James growled. The three of them were leading a group of Team Rocket grunts in the fight against the Missingno. The three of them were doing surprisingly well… but Giovanni obviously must have underestimated the size and strength of the gang, because Team Rocket was outnumbered by more than a hundred, and one agent after the other went down against them …

"Which side are we rooting for?" Asked Brock

"I think we want Team Rocket to win" Answered Ebi

"Then shouldn't we get in there and help them?" Asked Misty

"No! We have to wait!" said Ebi "If we go on, both sides will attack us. We have to let them fight it out and wait for both forces to thin…"

**CRASH!**

"Ah!" Everyone jumped up in surprise when the stack of crates suddenly went crashing down, making a lot of noise, not to mention completely blowing their cover

"Sorry Ebi, but waiting just isn't my style!" Said Ash, standing up with his leg out. Apparently he was the one who kicked the stack and made it crash, "I'm going in right now!!!" Putting on the QuickSilver, he immediately ran into battle

"Finally! I was getting bored of waiting!" Misty pulled out her mallet as well as the pokéballs and followed Ash

"Gah! Those idiots! They've ruined the strategy!" Ebi punched the crates

"Hey, we're still here" Brock and Tracey stood behind him, "About the strategy?"

"Whatever… just go and fight… not like either of you have much use anyways, especially since now that Ash pretty much does all the fighting himself you're just extra baggage that holds back the AAML…" Ebi muttered

"Well EXCUSE me (jerk…)" the two of them grumbled as they walked into battle…

"I might as well leave… if I stay here, I'll only be a burden" Ebi sighed, wishing he could fight as well… "Good luck Ash… I have faith in you" He said, leaving the building. He wasn't wishing Ash luck in winning the battle, no… he knew Ash could easily win. What he was referring to was the Power of One…

"HAAAA!!!" Ash shouted as he charged through the masses of Missingno gang members, smashing everyone who stood in his way and sent them flying in different directions, "POKÉBALL! GO!!!" He shouted, releasing his entire team, "VINE WHIP! FIRE SPIN! HYDROTHUNDER!" Ash shouted, and his pokémon fired their attacks, wiping out both some of Team Rocket's and Missingno Gang's pokémon. "HMM!" Ash then whipped out a handful of nitro balls in his hands, "HA!" he threw them forward, causing a huge explosion that blasted everyone out of his way.

"ICE PILLAR!!!" Misty shouted, as Staryu and Starmie both fired jets of water, while Politoe'd froze the water with Ice Beam, creating a flying pillar of ice…

**CRASH!!!!**

"AAAHHH!!!"

"HAAA!" She spun around, wielding the sledgehammer and sending people flying, "You punks are way out of your league!"

"GEODUDE!! GO!" Brock shouted, running beside the rock Pokémon, "MEGA PUNCH!!! HYAAAA!!!!" Geodude slammed one of them with his stone fists and sent him flying, while Brock slammed another one across the face with his frying pan

"MARIL! USE IRON TAIL!" Tracey shouted, holding Maril as the ball on its tail became as hard as steel. Leaping forward, Maril swung its tail like a flail and struck anyone who came close while forcing others to keep their distance

"I can't believe it! It's the twerps!" Jessie and James exclaimed, seeing Ash's group

"What I can't believe is how much damage they're doing!" Meowth exclaimed, panting slightly. Team Rocket was losing this battle, but the moment Ash and his friends joined in, the tides turned completely. They were literally smashing through their numbers, and there was no one who could compete with their strength and skill! "Guys… I'd think we'd better run, because as soon as they're finished with the gang, it'll probably be us next!"

"Your right… TEAM ROCKET IS TAKING OFF AGAIN!!" The three of them shouted, as they along with the grunts ran off. As they ran, James' voice could be heard, "But what are we gonna tell the boss?"

"(Pant… pant…) There's just no end to these guys!" Brock growled, as sweat poured down the side of his face. Even with the numbers they've taken down, they were still outnumbered greatly… "RHAA!" he swung his frying pan again. More came charging, but Geodude tackled into them, throwing them all back, "Worse than that, more and more of them are releasing their pokémon, adding to the numbers! Even if they stood in line and politely let us knock them out, it'd take us forever to beat them!"

"What's more, our opponents are human! We have to hold back on our attacks, or we may end up killing them!" Tracey growled as Scyther slammed one of them on the head with the flat side of its bladelike talons, being careful not to cut them. "We can't hit with full strength, but there's too many to hold back!"

"If we don't come up with a better strategy, we're not gonna last much longer!" said Misty as her water pokémon attacked Rhyhorn, knocking it out

"HAAA!" Ash lifted a man over his head and threw him at an incoming group, while Pikachu leapt over his shoulder and took down a group of pokémon with thunder, "You hear that Pikachu?" he asked, the two of them had listened to their friends. "Even though we're strong enough to go on fighting, our friends are getting tired!" he spoke… "OUT OF THE WAY!" he kicked another guy and sent him flying "Misty's right, if we go on, our friends could be in danger! Maybe we should pull out for now and come back when we have a better strategy!"

"What's that you say? You're running away from small-fries like this?" A voice spoke, "And here I was just starting to think you were tough!"

"Thinking of backing down against these numbers… I'm disappointed in you Ketchum!" another familiar voice called up

"Huh?" Ash, Misty, Brock and Tracey turned around…

"AAAAAHH!!!!" many of the punks screamed as they along with their pokémon were sent flying in different directions, flung through the air like rag dolls. Those that weren't hit all gasped, suddenly freezing in place when they saw who did it…

"It's rude of you guys to start the party without us" Cleft cracked his knuckles, and slid on an iron gauntlet… "GROUND ZERO!!!" with all his strength he struck the ground with his fist, creating a massive shockwave that sent anyone within twenty feet of him flying through the air. "Anyone who wants to die, step forwards now"

In one hand, Bonsai unfolded bladed war-fan. "HAAA!" Suddenly he shot forward, quicker than the eye can see. Darting left and right, swinging that bladed fan, and came to a stop. Everyone he darted past immediately collapsed to the ground, covered in many thin cuts. He then pulled out a small bag filled with some sort of powder, and threw it all into the air. "Hmm!" Quickly he jumped up and opened a second fan, using them to scatter the dust over the attackers

"UGH…!" everyone who was hit by the powder gasped, immediately collapsing to the ground… struggling to breathe, unable to move…!

"Don't bother trying to get up. You've been hit with poison I've extracted from special herbs. Don't worry, it isn't lethal… but don't expect to regain control of your body anytime soon" he took a fighting stance with both war fans, causing a lot of people to back away, "Is there anyone still brave enough to fight me?"

"Whoa…" Ash and his friends gasped, seeing these Fiends' incredible strength.

"And THAT Ketchum, is how you instil fear over your enemies" the two of them looked at Ash and smirked, "We're here to help you fight, as payment for pulling me out of the forest. We may be outlaws, but we aren't ingrates." Said Cleft

"Uh… yeah…" Ash sweatdropped. The mere sight of these two notorious Super Fiends would have already been enough to scare away most of the gang… but seeing what they were capable of? Those punks were frozen in fear.

"Who… who are you kidding?!" one of the punks stepped forward, clutching a pokéball, "You think we're scared of you?!"

"Well for someone who isn't afraid, your legs sure are shaking an awful lot" said Cleft

"S-shut up!" That punk tried to look tough, but was failing miserably. More than anything, along with all the others, he looked like he wanted to run away…

"Why would people who are obviously terrified of us, still want to fight?" asked Bonsai "Is it bravery that drives you to continue? Or is it just the opposite? Could it be that you're all too scared someone else to run away?"

"That is correct…" A voice spoke up "They are afraid of you… but even more so of their leader, and what will happen to them should they run…" the person stepped through the crowd, into the open… Ash, Misty, Bonsai and Cleft's eyes opened wide.

"AH…!" Ash gasped… seeing the hooded figure… "YOU!!!!"

"It sure has been a while…" Doppelganger smiled wickedly… "Hasn't it, Ketchum?"

_Just as the battle seemed to have been won with the arrival of the two Fiends assisting Ash… Doppelganger has returned, more malicious than ever before? And what of the leader of this gang, who could instil enough fear into his own followers to make them fight such terrifying opponents, or Red Kaiser whom even the Fiends speak so fearfully of? Find out next time, on PUA!_

(TO BE CONTINUED)


	15. The Power of One Shines On!

Chapter 15- The Power of One Shines On!

_When I first defeated Doppelganger, I felt that time that all our troubles were over and we could move on. I had no idea how wrong I was that time, as it had the complete opposite effect, attracting even more trouble than ever before. It was naïve of me to think that just by getting stronger I could make it all go away… though it certainly has helped, because the level of my opponents seem to keep rising. At this moment, all of my pokémon are nearing level 100, and yet it doesn't seem to matter to my opponents, because they've attained levels that go beyond the limits of pokémon trainers. Still… I'll find a way to beat them, no matter how strong they are, because I was soon to discover… something even more amazing than the Unistrike or the Kaiser Beasts or anything of the sort… my own power…_

_-Ash Ketchum_

(Location- Missingno Gang HQ)

"AH…!" Ash gasped… seeing the hooded figure… "YOU!!!!"

"It sure has been a while…" Doppelganger smiled wickedly… "Hasn't it, Ketchum?"

"RHAAAA!!!!" Before anyone could move, Ash roared and dove forward, pouncing on Doppelganger and slamming him to the ground… "WHAT?!" he exclaimed, when Doppelganger shattered to pieces!

"You keep falling for the same trick, idiot!" another Doppelganger laughed, it was unclear if he was the real one either. He stood some distance from Ash, "No, I'm not gonna fight you, yet. I just came to _remind_ these people where their loyalties lie…" he eyed the rest of the gang, "And to personally invite Ketchum and my former comrades to come meet the boss. As for YOU, Ketchum…" he scowled, "We have a score to settle…" and with that, he shattered to pieces

"Pft, another copy… we thought his ability was cool at first, but when it comes down to it, he's a one-trick pony." Bonsai scoffed, "However, that invitation does sound interesting" Bonsai smirked

"And I'm not opposed to the idea of trashing faker again…" Ash cracked his knuckles "But it doesn't look like THEY'RE about to let us through" he commented…

"They're not even worth your time, Ash!" Brock stepped forward, "You go on ahead and deal with the boss! We'll handle things here!"

"You guys are good, but not THAT good. You won't be able to handle these numbers" said Bonsai, and turned to Cleft, "You! Stay here and fight with them!"

"WHAT?! Why do I have to stay and fight the garbage?!" Cleft exclaimed, while a lot of the punks scowled at the remark, being referred to as 'garbage'.

"This is the leader and Doppelganger we're dealing with, it's not gonna be the same as the usual trash. Plus, with your injuries, I don't think you're exactly ready to fight the tough guys just yet" said Bonsai

"Yeah right! Even in this state I can take you on!"

"Oh yeah right, what are you gonna do, beat me up with a crutch?"

"Watch it grass boy! Speaking of which, you hadn't been smoking any, haven't you? It'd explain how you actually got the idea you're stronger than me! Sky Render warned you to quit, but you being the plant expert, it wouldn't be that hard for you to get your little green fingers on the stuff…"

"HEY! I may specialise in grass, but I don't smoke it!" Bonsai snapped at him, but then paused, "At least not anymore…" he added guiltily, and at that statement Cleft looked at him in disbelief and then burst out laughing. "GRRR…"

**SMACK!**

"AGH!" Cleft exclaimed, and Ash and his friends sweatdropped when Bonsai uppercutted his comrade into the air, and landing among the crowd of punks

"Let's go, Ketchum!" said Bonsai, grabbing Ash and pulling him by the arm, "Your friends will be fine." he looked back, seeing Cleft was swearing loudly and smashing his fists left and right, sending gang members flying everywhere, while Ash's friends started attacking again. There was a door leading outside of this room, and Bonsai kicked it open and they ran through. "And quick word of warning… I'd better not hear any jokes, hippie remarks, or anything of the sort regarding my old… habits… because I will NOT hesitate to kill over it (wouldn't be the first time), understand?" he added in a threatening voice

"Whatever…" Ash's mind seemed to be elsewhere, as the two of them continued running through a filthy hallway, they could see another door coming up quickly, "Whatever we may face… I'm taking on the faker" Ash spoke in a serious tone

"Still holding a grudge, huh?" Bonsai stared at him, "Well that's fine with me…"

"Let's go. One… two… THREE!!!" the two of them shouted and tackled the door, busting right through it and running into the room inside. Ash, Pikachu and Bonsai looked around. It was a wide room, with high ceilings, there were stacks of crates everywhere, meaning this place must've been used as a storage area at one point.

"Hmph…" Bonsai looked at the crates, "Frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if these things were filled with drugs. Just running around and mugging random people doesn't bring in that much income…"

"That door was unlocked you know." A voice spoke up. Ash and Bonsai moved forward, and saw two figures. One of them was Doppelganger, the other was a larger person, sitting on top of a crate. Dressed in a black outfit, his hair was dyed in a flaming red colour, and had a fiery pattern tattooed from his shoulder down to his elbow. Wrapped around his forearm was a chain. This was the leader of the Missingno gang…

"So we meet again… Jackknife…" said Bonsai, staring at him

"You're the leader of the Missingno Gang…" Said Ash. This man… he was in his mid-twenties, and he didn't really seem like the warrior type… however… Ash could sense it… this man was strong…

"You're Ash Ketchum, right?" Jackknife looked at Ash, "I've heard a lot about you… believe me, my little brother wouldn't shut up about it" he turned to Doppelganger

"You two are related?" Ash said, somewhat surprised, "Well there's one screwed up family" at that remark, Doppelganger lunged at Ash, but Jackknife grabbed him

"That's right, we're brothers… and I also happen to be a lot stronger" he replied, ignoring Ash's statement. "I didn't have any interest in being a Super Fiend, and I was especially glad when we broke off connections… but now, just what are you doing, showing up like this? Come to give me a goodbye kiss?" he added mockingly

"You know exactly what I came for!" Bonsai took a fighting stance, "You were said to be the strongest punk ever to walk this town… and I wanna see just how strong…"

"So you came to fight me for that?" He laughed, "Fine then… I'll accept your challenge…" slowly he got up. From out of nowhere he pulled out a dangerous-looking combat knife, and spun it skilfully between his fingers, "HAAA!!!"

**-CLANG-**

"AH?!" Ash gasped, before he knew what happened, Jackknife had darted forward and nearly slashed Bonsai! Bonsai however had deflected the blade with a folded iron war-fan "(_He's good…!_)" was the first thought to cross his mind…

"HAA!" Jackknife roared, swinging his other hand and punching Bonsai across the face, causing the fiend to stumble back a few steps, "RHAA!!" He moved forward, swinging aggressively, forcing the fiend back… "YA!" when Bonsai blocked the knife, Jack had kicked against his chin, and swung his blade at his neck…!

"NGH!" Bonsai gritted his teeth and moved his head, evading a lethal swing. Quickly he jumped back, putting some distance between him and his opponent. Bonsai could feel a sharp pain on his neck, that knife had grazed him. "Fast… more than that, skilled too." He placed his hand over the cut, "Any deeper and it would've hit a vital spot, I'd bleed to death…" a smile crossed his face, "You ARE good."

"Don't underestimate me, Super Fiend" Jackknife spat "As for you…" he turned his gaze to Ash, "I've arranged another playmate for you. Sick him, boy"

"Huh?!" Ash looked up, and Pikachu's cheeks started sparking when a large figure stepped out of the darkness, standing atop a large stack of the crates…

"HOUUNND!!!" The figure howled, leaping down from the crates, trying to pounce on Ash, but the trainer quickly moved to the side, just missing it

"A Houndoom!?" Ash exclaimed, jumping back as the large pokémon wearing a spiked collar turned to him and growled… "Pikachu! Use…!"

**SMACK!**

"AH!" Ash exclaimed when Doppelganger leapt out of nowhere and kicked Ash on the side of the head, causing it to also hit the crate. As if that wasn't enough, Houndoom immediately leapt forward and pounced on Ash! "GRR!!!" Ash growled, holding up the QuickSilver over his face when the large pokémon tried to take a bite out of him, "GRRR…! PIKACHU! ATTACK!!!" Ash shouted out.

"PIKACHUUU!!!"

**BZZZZT!!!**

"AAAAH!!!" Ash screamed as lightning surged through both Houndoom and himself… but it was worth it, because Houndoom leapt back. "Agh…" Ash got to his feet and panted, looking at the pokémon. Despite being shocked, he didn't seem that hurt

"One attack won't do anything to this pokémon" Said Doppelganger, "Unlike the rest of the pokémon in this gang, we actually take good care of this one. We've had this Houndoom for years… and he is at Level 100, you are no match…" he smirked, placing his hand on the pokémon's back, "FLAMETHROWER!"

"HM!" Ash quickly leapt to the side, missing the fire attack, "AH!" he exclaimed when Doppelganger ducked and kicked the back of his legs, causing him to fall back…

"HEADBUTT!!!" Doppelganger shouted, and Houndoom immediately leapt forward, slamming its skull right into Ash's torso…

"AGH!" Ash gasped as he flew back and hit the wall… sliding to the ground…

"If you don't mind, I would like to give you a little lesson about the Missingno Gang…" said Doppelganger as he approached him, "Did you know there are two divisions? One is the main one, run by my dear brother right here in Scarlet City… the other is in Teal Ville, run by me…" Doppelganger looked down at Ash, "I have always commanded respect… and why not? After all, I have strength, I have special powers… and what's more, I have just been allowed into the Super Fiends. With those in mind, no one would dare oppose me… until you came along…" he growled…

**THUD!**

Doppelganger kicked Ash in the chest! "I was beaten by a common pokémon trainer! No… worse than that… beaten by a child!" he kicked again, but Ash didn't move. It wasn't even certain he was conscious or not… what with his head leaning downwards while his back was against the wall. "Everything I have worked so hard for had suddenly been shattered! My position as one of the fiends has been stripped away… and my followers have all left me! The Teal Ville Missingno gang had disbanded in one night, all over a single loss!" He shouted, continuing to kick Ash, "Even here, no one respects me! They only listen to me because they're afraid of my brother! But in reality… just like everyone else… THEY'RE ALL LOOKING DOWN ON ME!!!" He kicked again… but was surprised, "WHAT?!"

"Are you done yet?" Ash spoke calmly, not even looking up, while his hand was gripped tightly around Doppelganger's ankle. He threw the ex-fiend's leg to the side, causing him to stumble and nearly fall over, while Ash slowly got up and dusted himself off. "No hesitation whatsoever… your pokémon I mean." He said, looking at Doppelganger, as if he hadn't listened to a word he's said. "Pokémon almost never attack humans by choice… not unless commanded by the trainer or if they truly feel threatened… but what I saw was neither. You don't even have to tell Houndoom to attack me directly. Could it be that it does this regularly?"

"Grrr…! I told you already, this Houndoom is perfectly trained." Said Doppelganger, insulted that Ash didn't listen to anything he said just now. "We've worked hard on training this pokémon, and taught it to make no distinction between human or pokémon, both are viable targets. We don't even have to tell Houndoom who to attack, because he already knows." Doppelganger smirked and pointed at Ash, "After all, to eliminate the trainer is the same as winning a battle! In both cases he can no longer fight back… much better than engaging in a long drawn-out and pointless…!"

**SMACK!!!**

Doppelganger's speech was cut short, when Ash slammed his fist across his face. The ex-fiend flew back and hit the ground, clutching the side of his face and writhing in pain… while Ash glared down at him coldly.

"Don't EVER speak that way about pokémon battles" Ash spoke. "It's not enough you treat this pokémon like some weapon… but the way you've corrupted it, desensitizing it from understanding the pain it inflicts when it attacks others just to fulfil your own petty ambitions…" Ash took a fighting stance, "I will not forgive you"

"Ngh… agh…!" Doppelganger groaned, slowly getting up… he panted, gasping for air and clutched the side of his face. That punch from Ash… the strength… he couldn't believe a kid could hit so hard. "(_I knew he might've gotten stronger… but THIS… it's unbelievable…!_)" he suddenly began to growl, "(_No… I will be intimidated… not by HIM!_)" He took a fighting stance, while Houndoom stood ready beside him, "The one who took everything away from me…!" suddenly, copies of him started appearing, all of them glaring hatefully at Ash… "RHAAA!" they all attacked…

"HM!" even when Ash was being attacked by twelve of them, he stood his ground and swerved his body left and right, moving his arms and blocking any attacks with ease, "HAAA!!!" He shouted, as he began attacking, shattering each of the copies with his fists… even when the pieces came back together, it made no difference! "As you can see, faker… I'm not the same as I was the first time we fought!" he spoke, dodging every single hit, "And another thing…!" he turned his head and faced one of them… suddenly he darted forward and swung his fist…

**THUNK!**

"AGH…!" Doppelganger gasped, his body leaned forward and his mouth hung open, at the feel of the impact between Ash's fist and his gut

"You're the real one" Ash said, as Doppelganger fell to the ground

"H… how… did you know…!?" Doppelganger gasped

"It's really simple… cowardly scum like you never put yourselves in danger, and you were the one standing furthest from me." Ash grinned, holding up a peace sign, "If you REALLY wanted to trick me, you should've attacked up front. But then again, I probably would've flattened you anyways…"

"FLAMETHROWER!!!" Doppelganger screamed

"CAPTURE!" Ash immediately spun around, opening one of the colourless EC Balls Ebi gave him. The fire was sucked into the pokéball, and it closed itself tight, while a symbol of fire appeared, meaning it has become a Fire-Attack ball. "HM!" immediately he threw the fire-attack ball at the incoming copies, melting them and destroying them for real! "Give it up faker, you can't win" Ash smirked

"N… NO!!!" Doppelganger scrambled to his feet and shouted, "HOUNDOOM! DON'T STOP! KEEP ATTACKING! WHATEVER IT TAKES! ATTACK!!!!" he screamed

"Grrr… RHAR!!!" Houndoom howled as it leapt through the air, its fangs bared, ready to tear Ash apart…

"Pikachu, Thunder" Ash said, almost lazily

**CRASH!!!**

"HOUUUUUND!!!!" The Dark/Fire pokémon screamed out, when a GIGANTIC bolt of lightning struck it. Houndoom stood there for a moment, staggering, smoke coming from its body, before collapsing to the ground.

"N… NO!!! IMPOSSIBLE!!" Doppelganger screamed, "HOUNDOOM IS AT LEVEL 100!! HOW COULD IT BE BEATEN SO EASILY?!"

"Levels aren't everything. Heck, that pokémon could be level one million for all I care, and it still won't be a match for us" Said Ash, holding his hand out, as Pikachu climbed up his arm and sat on his shoulder. Turning around, he faced Doppelganger, "What we share here… the bond between a pokémon and a trainer, this is power that no amount of levels can match!" He shouted, "Face it, you've lost!"

"N… NO!!! I WON'T BE BEATEN AGAIN!!!" Doppelganger screamed, and in a frenzy, charged at Ash… "AGH!!!" He screamed when Ash hit him, knocking him down

"You know, that earlier statement, about everyone looking down on you? (yes, I was listening) It isn't true you know." Said Ash as he walked over to Doppelganger and smirked, "You've got it all wrong… it's not that I look down on you…"

**BAM!**

"AAAAAAHHHH!!!!" Doppelganger flew through the air and smashed right into the brick wall, "Ungh… agh…!" he gasped, his body completely embedded into the wall

"It's just that I freaking HATE you!" Ash shouted, as Doppelganger blacked out. "Whew…" he sighed, and stared at his defeated opponent, "Wow, this sure is a familiar picture… no wait, something's missing. Ah yes… Keh-heh-heh!" he laughed as he reached into Doppelganger's pockets and took his wallet, "Whew… not bad!" he whistled, counting the money, "I wonder how're the others doing?"

(Meanwhile)

"HMM!" The Super Fiend Bonsai and the Missingno Gang leader Jackknife were engaged in a fierce battle. Both fought at an even level of skills, though Bonsai seemed more proficient with his weapons, Jackknife was equally powerful and aggressive, tearing through any obstructions as he tried to slay the fiend.

"You know… that's some pretty good power you got there!" Bonsai smirked, jumping back as Jackknife missed him and ripped through a crate, but continued lashing out at him, "Attacking wildly like that would wear most people out in no time, but you just keep on going!" he smirked as he deflected the knife with a folded fan, "You know… back where I come from, they used a ranking system to measure the level of criminals. They may not use 'the ranking' in this country, but I'd say you'd qualify for a B-rank criminal…" he said, moving back and avoiding the attacks, "But you know, that's judging from strength alone, and you could easily go a lot further than that… but instead you're rotting away here in some small town, what's up with that?"

"HAA!" Jackknife punched with one hand, striking a wooden crate and smashing right through it, "Unlike you, I've actually got a plan!" he continued swinging his weapon, cutting through more crates as he tried to hit the Fiend, "I have no intentions of running some puny gang for the rest of my life, and I didn't join yours because I've got no interest in living the life of a vagrant!" he stopped and growled, "No… I'm going to stay here, and continue to rule this city through fear, eliminating those who oppose me. I'll keep building up my forces, extorting money and gaining weapons and power. I'll create my own criminal empire, one surpassing Team Rocket!"

"Whew… that's quite a plan. But do you honestly think that'll work?" asked Bonsai

"Oh… it will, I've made sure of it…" Jackknife stopped and stepped back, though not lowering his guard. "I've been getting help from another group… they're pretty shady and I barely know anything about them, but I've got no complaints. They've been a most useful business partner, supplying with all the weapons. I doubt a lowlife like you has ever heard of them, but they call themselves the Kaiser Cult."

"WHAT!?" at that statement, Bonsai's calm expression suddenly changed to a serious one, "You… actually deal with them?" he growled, clutching his weapons tight. "You have no idea what you've gotten yourself into… associating with the Kaisers… you're just their pawn… no, even lower than that…! And to assist them in any way, is a crime against humanity itself!" he took a fighting stance, but unlike before where he seemed to be enjoying the battle, he looked ready to kill, "No more games. I'm ending this right now. HAAA!!!!"

"AH?!" Jackknife gasped, when suddenly Bonsai went onto the offensive… no, more than that, a total frenzy! "Urgh!" he growled, moving back and defending himself as best as he could against the bladed fans, but Bonsai was too fast… and his wounds were piling up…!

"Hm…" Bonsai stood there, as Jackknife stood panting heavily… "Any last words?"

"Yeah… as matter of fact…" a smile crossed his face, "I don't know what makes you hate the Kaisers so much… after all… look at what they gave me" he pulled out a small, strange looking vial of liquid, with a needle at the end, "HMM!" he quickly stuck it into his arm, "Ugh… agh…!" he started to growl, "AAAAHHH!!!"

"What's going on?!" Ash exclaimed as he ran into the scene, seeing Jackknife fall to his knees, "What's happening to him?!"

"This is…!" Bonsai growled, looking down at the vial, and seeing a symbol on it. "The symbol of the Kaiser Cult…!" he growled… "AH!"

**SMASH!!!**

"AGH!!!" Bonsai screamed as he was suddenly sent flying, by a punch from Jackknife! "W… what?!" he exclaimed, surprised by the power of that attack!

"RAAA!!!" Jackknife roared, clenching his fists tight. He was sweating… and his clothes were partially ripped by all these muscles that appeared out of nowhere, "H-heh… such power…!" he laughed, looking at his arms… his muscles had grown over twice the size they once were. "HAA!!!" he suddenly slammed the ground with his fist, shattering it easily, "Hmm… yes… I like this… HAAA!!!" he suddenly darted forward and attacked Bonsai, swinging wildly and crushing everything in his path.

"Urgh…!" Bonsai growled as he was being pushed back, trying hard to defend himself and deflect the attacks, "WHOA!" he gasped when Jackknife grabbed a whole crate and tried to smash it on him, and narrowly evaded a swing from the blade! "Grr…! He's nothing like he was earlier…!" he growled, feeling pain in his arms simply from deflecting the attacks… "He's become much stronger… even more than me!"

"What's going on?!" Ash exclaimed

"It's because of the injection… it was made by the Kaisers… it can only be Berserker Serum!" Said Bonsai, looking at the object on the floor, the one Jackknife injected himself with. "When someone is injected with this, they grow tremendously in strength! He was already strong, but with this serum, it's taken his strength to new heights! Grr… sorry Ketchum, but I'm not sure if we could win this battle!" suddenly, his eyes caught movement, Jackknife was attacking, but he was aiming for Ash! "MOVE!" He exclaimed, pushing Ash aside…

**SLASH!!!**

"AH!!!" Bonsai exclaimed

"BONSAI!!!" Ash screamed, as the fiend collapsed to the ground, bleeding

"Ugh…! Too… careless…!" Bonsai growled, clutching his chest. The cut wasn't too deep, but it was very wide, running all the way down from his shoulder across his chest. Slowly, he grabbed his weapons and tried to get up…

"No, stop! You'll die if you move with those wounds!" Ash gasped

"And who else is gonna fight him… you?" Bonsai asked, "Give me a break… you may be strong, but this freak is way above your level-"

**SMACK!**

"Sorry I had to do that… but it was the only way" said Ash, as Bonsai fell to the ground unconscious. Ash had knocked him out, or else he would've tried to fight. "As for you…" Ash turned around and faced Jackknife, "I'll be your opponent now!" he took a fighting stance, as he faced the transformed leader of the gang…

(Meanwhile)

"Is that all of them?!" asked Brock, panting heavily. All around them lay injured punks and unconscious pokémon, their numbers in the hundreds.

"It has to be… I don't think I can go on any longer…" Tracey sighed and collapsed to his knees, as did his pokémon

"You're tired after just this much?" Asked Cleft, who despite his visible injuries from a prior skirmish, could still go on. "Oh well, guess I can't blame you. You guys aren't used to fighting these sorts of battles. They can take a lot outta you at first…"

"Hmm…" Misty looked down… the others noticed as well. "Ash…" she said quietly, "He's still fighting… he's fighting for us, in even harder battle! I should've gone with him!" she gripped her knuckles tight "Hmm?" she suddenly felt a large hand placed gently on her head. Looking up, she saw Cleft smiling sympathetically down at her

"Worried about him, huh?" he spoke gently, "Now that I think about it, you always seem to be the one who cares most about his safety." Cleft smiled, "I've been meaning to ask, but are you two a couple?"

"N-no! We're nothing like that!" Misty looked down to hide the redness of her cheeks

"Hmm…" Cleft stared at her, not fully believing her statement… "Either way, Ketchum is really lucky, to be surrounded by friends as loyal and dedicated as you!" he smiled, looking around at the rest of Ash's group, who couldn't help but smile at the statement. But Cleft noticed that Misty still seemed concerned… "Misty… am I right? I understand how you're feeling, but what's best for both you and Ash is that you remain here. Right now, he's fighting a hard fight, and needs focus. The best thing you could do is to trust in him, and greet him with a smile when he returns victorious!" he smiled, giving them a thumbs-up…

"Trust… in Ash…" Misty repeated, her smile returned…

(Meanwhile)

"AGH!" Ash gasped, and blocking the combat knife with QuickSilver. Despite having shielded himself, he could feel the strength of Jackknife's arms, it was far stronger than his! "WHY YOU! HAA!!!" Ash shouted as he kicked upward against the man's chin, causing him to stumble back, "PIKACHU! THUNDER ATTACK!" he shouted

"PIKA!" Pikachu leapt forward and shot a blast of lightning at their opponent

"And now…" Ash aimed the QuickSilver forward… "NITRO BALLS! GO!" he shouted, firing many of them from the shooter…

**KABOOM!**

"WA!" Ash exclaimed, getting pushed back by the explosion. "Did it work?!" he asked himself as he saw the smoke clearing…

"Grrr…" Jackknife growled, standing there, his feet anchored to the ground and his arms crossed in the 'X' position. His clothes were partially torn, and there was smoke coming from his body, but despite this, he was unharmed! "H… heh-heh… it doesn't hurt…!" he lowered his arms, revealing an insane grin, "Nothing you did… your punch, the electricity… not even the explosions! It doesn't work at all! Ha-ha…!" he stood there grinning, his shoulders hunched and his head tilted forward slightly, "What was that Super Fiend babbling about… calling it a mistake to deal with the Kaisers? This was the best decision I've made in my life…! Look at me…! I'm invincible!"

"You're a freak, that's what you are" Ash growled… taking a fighting stance, as Pikachu stood ready next to him "HAAA!!!" He darted forward, punching his face

"You call that a punch?!" Jackknife shouted, "THIS IS A PUNCH!"

"AGH!" Ash exclaimed as he flew back. He immediately got back up, but Jackknife immediately attacked him, "UGH!" he gasped, feeling the man's fist hit his stomach and hit the ground once more. Ash reeled back, but quickly regained his composure… his eyes caught a glint of metal, his opponent was gonna finish him off with the blade! "PIKACHU! THUNDER WAVE!" he suddenly shouted. The electric pokémon released a strong current of electricity that ran through their opponent's body

"Gr… GRAGH…!" Jackknife exclaimed, freezing just inches away from Ash… his body became numb and he couldn't move…!

"SILVER BULLET!!!" Ash suddenly shouted… Suddenly, the boosters on the QuickSilver flared, taking off like a rocket even though it was attached to his arm… "HAA!" he shouted, swinging his arm upwards with all his might…!

**SMACK!!!!!!**

"AAAGH!!!!" Jackknife screamed, his knife was shattered by Ash's QuickSilver fist, and his head flung back when Ash uppercutted him, the impact strengthened even further by the rocket boost! Jackknife stood there… his eyes opened wide, staggering… "Ungh…" he let out a weak groan, and fell on his back…

"(Pant… pant…)" Ash was gasping for air… but he did it… he had won… "AH…!" his and Pikachu's eyes widened in disbelief… "No… it can't be…!" he exclaimed, that last attack, there's no way a human could get up after being hit by something like that…!

"Grrr…" Jackknife was on his feet again… but this time, he was different. His muscles seem to have grown even further, and veins were apparent. "RRR…" he snarled, his teeth were clenched tight, and his eyes… were completely white, as if he had become a monster… "RHAAA!!!!" he roared, lunging at Ash!

"WHOA!" Ash exclaimed, moving back from the berserker! He was trying his best to defend himself from the fierce attacks, but Jackknife had gone completely out of control! "RHA!" Ash shouted, hitting him, but his fist had no effect and Jackknife simply returned the favour with even greater force… he was just too strong… "Hah… hah…" Ash was on his knees, gasping for air… he was wounded badly by the attacks

"Pika…!" Pikachu growled, cheeks sparking…

"No, Pikachu…" Ash held his hand out, motioning him to stop, "The man's a monster now… and if you or any of the pokémon attack him… you'll become targets as well…" he growled… right now, that man was stronger than any of Ash's pokémon, and would not hesitate to seriously injure them or worse…

"Pika… Pika Pikachu!" Pikachu said angrily

"I know, Pikachu… and that's precisely why you mustn't fight." Said Ash… slowly getting up. Pikachu had told him that he and all the other pokémon were with him, and they were all willing to risk their lives for his sake! "It's true that I may be no match for that man… but I'm not the kind of trash who'll sacrifice my pokémon just to save my own skin! If we should lose, I will be the only victim!" He clenched his fist, and Pikachu understood what he was saying. Ash was placing their safety over his! "I will fight this battle myself…"

"GRRR…" Jackknife stood there… his head tilted slightly to the side. Next to Ash, this berserker seemed gigantic…

"Hm…" Ash turned and faced him, completely unafraid. "You who are driven by greed and a lust for power… you may appear strong, but it's all a façade… you're an even bigger faker than your worthless brother. The fact that you've fallen into madness by your petty desires proves how weak you are." Ash spoke seriously… "You harm others, simply to further your own selfish ambitions… and you've spread pain and terror all over the innocent people of this city…" he spoke, his eyes shone with determination, his wounds and pain completely forgotten… "Your biggest mistake of all was threatening my friends…" Ash took a fighting stance… and a strange golden glow began to surround the QuickSilver… it was beginning to shine brighter…

"Pika…?" Pikachu's eyes opened wide…

"Hmm?" Bonsai's eyes slowly opened, and he looked at Ash… "AH…!" he gasped in disbelief when he saw the light that surrounded the QuickSilver… "T… THAT'S…!!!"

"For all the people you've hurt… for all the damage you have done…!" Ash continued to talk, and the QuickSilver was shining bright gold, like the sun itself! And the power that surrounded him…! Was unlike anything he's ever felt before…! Jackknife backed away… frozen in the face of this incredible power… "I WILL DEFEAT YOU!!!"

**SMASH!!!!!**

"AHHHH!!!!!" Jackknife screamed when Ash struck him in the chest. The impact was so powerful, he was thrown right off his feet, and sent flying. He crashed through one stack of crates after another… but he wasn't stopping…!

**CRASH!!!**

"ARGH…!" Jackknife gasped when he finally stopped flying, after he hit the brick wall. The impact was so great, the wall was cracked… "IM… IMPOSSIBLE…" he gasped, colour returning to his eyes, and the muscles he had gained from the serum were fading away. "My… goals… everything… it's all… ungh…" his senses faded away, as he fell to the ground. Jackknife… has fallen. The Missingno Gang was defeated!

"Whew…" Ash gasped, standing there… "Hmm? WA!" He exclaimed, looking at the QuickSilver and seeing the golden glow, "Why is it like this!?" he stared at it… "Oh…" slowly the glow faded away… and the power that surrounded him was also gone.

"Ungh… that… light… it can't be…" Bonsai gasped, staring at Ash. "No way… he holds the Power of One…" he sat up, clutching his wounded chest, "That boy… Ash Ketchum… he's… a Chosen One…?" once again… his senses faded as well, "Heh… Sky will definitely want to hear about this…" he said as he blacked out.

(Location- Scarlet City Pokémon Centre)

"CHEERS!!!" Brock and Tracey exclaimed, clinking their glasses together, "To our victory!" The group was all gathered in the pokémon centre, and celebrating the Missingno Gang's defeat. With their leader and Doppelganger defeated and sent to jail, the gang has crumbled… "Now that the Missingno Gang's been disbanded, this city is safe again, and everything about that gang is just a bad memory!"

"Hmm…" Ash on the other hand stood by himself, he didn't take part in the celebration. Instead, he seemed to be immersed deep in his thoughts…

"Hey Ash, what's wrong?" asked Misty, suddenly popping up next to him

"WA!" Ash exclaimed in surprise, his train of thoughts suddenly being interrupted, "Ah… nothing's wrong Misty" he answered, shaking his head. "I'm happy of course, we did our job and won the battle, yeah… it's just…" he looked at his right hand, "(_That power back there… what WAS that?_)" he asked himself…

"Come on Ash, cheer up!" Misty smiled brightly, leaning her head on his shoulders and wrapping her arms around him… kissing him on the cheek…

"WA… M-MISTY! W-WHAT'S UP WITH YOU?!" Ash exclaimed, feeling his pulse shoot through the roof… "Huh? What's that smell… ALCOHOL!? WA!" he gasped, catching her before she fell. Misty was red in the face, she had passed out.

"Oh my god! She's drunk!" Ebi exclaimed, running over to her, "WHO GAVE HER ALCOHOL!?!?" he shouted… and all eyes turned to Brock

"Hey, don't look at me! I was trying to get Nurse Joy drunk!" Brock answered… but froze and sweatdropped when he realized he said the wrong thing out loud…

"Ugh…" Ash shook his head as Ebi and Brock started arguing about inappropriate behaviours and such. Sighing, he carried Misty over his shoulder and was heading to the bedroom areas, where he could put her in bed

"Hey Ash! Make sure you remember to use protection!" Brock's voice called

"SHUT UP!" Ash turned around and roared, as he walked into the bedroom and slammed the door shut. "There… easy…" Ash gently placed Misty down on the bed, careful not to wake her up or anything… "All right…!" he smiled silently, watching her sleep there. "(_Heh… when she's awake, she's scary, but when she's asleep, she's actually kinda cu_…)" before he could finish that thought, he suddenly punched himself on the head, "(_Get a hold of yourself Ash!_)" he gritted his teeth… but his face went red again when he remembered that little kiss on the cheek she gave him… "(_AHHH!_)" he screamed mentally, scrambling around, clutching his skull… "Hmm?" he suddenly turned around when the door clicked open…

"Argh! That stupid no-eyes…! I swear, I'm gonna kill him!" Ebi, who had apparently gotten into a fight with Brock and now had a black eye, came storming into the room and threw open his bag, and started digging through the contents. "Where did I keep those Motion Sensor Bombs?! I know I saved some of them since the last Smash Bros. Tournaments! Come on, there's gotta be at least one!" he growled, thinking of a good place to hide it so it would explode the moment Brock got close enough…

"Ebi…" Ash spoke up, causing Ebi to jump, "I need to talk to you."

"Ash!" Ebi exclaimed, but quickly calmed down. "Hm… I had a feeling you would."

"You see… during the battle…" Ash went on to recount everything that took place, from defeating Doppelganger to Jackknife using the Berserker Serum, to the moment that strange golden glow surrounded Ash… "I'm telling you this, because I have a feeling that you might know."

"As a matter of fact, I do." Answered Ebi, "Ash, give me the QuickSilver." Ash did what he was told. Ebi took out a screwdriver and began to open it up, "The power you spoke of came from the Shining Sphere…"

"The Shining Sphere?" Asked Ash

"Look" said Ebi as the QuickSilver opened. Ash looked in awe, as he saw an orb resting within the QuickSilver… a golden orb that shone like the sun! However, Ebi reached in and picked it up, but as soon as his hands touched it, the glow faded and it became nothing but an ordinary rock. "This is the item that only works in the hands of a Chosen One…" he turned his gaze to Ash, "That's you"

"Huh? Me?" asked Ash

"You know how there are Legendary pokémon in this world? They hold incredible power and know no equal? Well that rule applies to humans as well… humans who wield a special power, unmatched by anything in this world… the Power of One…" said Ebi, handing Ash the sphere. In Ash's hands, the sphere suddenly lit up, and glowed brightly like the sun once more! "This is proof that you are a Chosen One, for the Sphere to shine its light in your hands." He looked into Ash's eyes, "And you were able to harness this power, because of your determination to protect others."

"I… but… w-what?" Ash blinked, trying to understand

"There are many people in this world, whether pokémon trainers or human beings who have acquired incredible power through training… but the Chosen Ones surpass them all. The Chosen Ones… humans chosen by the earth… and holding the power of the gods. Throughout history they have fought against the many evils that lurk in the shadows to protect this world… and how history has found its way to you. Destiny has chosen you, Ash Ketchum, to wield this power…" he straightened his glasses, "And I was the one charged with the task of bringing it to you"

"Hmm…" Ash said nothing, but continued to listen.

"Years ago, when I started my travels, that time I was travelling with another group… we heard of the Shining Sphere and travelled the world to find it, and we would use the power for the greater good…" he explained, "After over a year of searching, we found it in a shrine in a hidden temple located deep in the jungle… and that's when the Super Fiends first started coming after us." He began to tremble, remembering their power… the group he travelled with consisted of strong and skilled fighters, but they were unable to stand up to the power of the Fiends… "We escaped barely, but knew that as long as we had it in our possession, they would hound us forever. It was then when we made the decision to go our separate ways, and only one of us would carry the sphere. The one chosen for this task was me. I continued my journey alone…"

"Two years had passed without incident… until one night, I had a dream… no, that is to say, I had a vision, from the Sphere." Said Ebi, "I may be a scientist, but I've seen enough things in this world to know there are things that can't be explained logically. The sphere was communicating with me… it was telling me to find the one who could wield its powers. Knowing my task, I began journeying with a new goal in mind… and that's when I first met you…" he turned to Ash, "One night as I was travelling through the streets of this city, I was attacked by two men who were trying to rob me. It was then when you came to my rescue" he straightened his glasses, "I had no idea you were the one at first… but as I continued to watch you fight and grow at an unbelievable rate, I was certain. That's why I worked tirelessly on constructing the tools and weapons to help you, before I could pass the Sphere to your hands… because the last message the sphere left me spoke of a great evil at work in the east… I placed the Sphere inside the QuickSilver, and you carried it unknowingly, activating it in a time of need. Now it is certain, you ARE the Chosen One I have been searching for!"

"Um…" Ash blinked, "Sorry Ebi, could you repeat that? You lost me at 'Temple'"

"GRRRR…" Ebi growled, grabbed Ash by the neck with one hand and clenched his fist. He was gonna punch Ash's lights out

"WHOA! HEY! I WAS LISTENING! I WAS JUST JOKING!" Ash sweatdropped and yelled before Ebi killed him, "So Ebi, this 'evil' you're talking about… what could it be? I mean… is it Team Rocket? Or the Super Fiends? I mean… I know they're supposed to be bad and all, but they were never capable of anything that would involve 'divine forces' and such… as for the Super Fiends… well…" he remembered each of the fiends… "They may be outlaws, but they know the meaning of honour. They just like fighting, that's all." He said, "Who could it be?"

"I really don't know… but since we have no destination in mind now, I think we might want to follow the sphere's advice…" said Ebi

"All right! So from here, we begin our travel east!" Said Ash

"It's not that simple. While this area may be lush and green, to go east we'll have to cross the immense wasteland known as the Marble Desert. More than that, just getting there is trouble, because there's a huge mountain cluster separating this region and the desert!

"That's fine then! I've got an idea on how to cut our travel time in half!" said Ash, "I'll go talk to Cleft, and ask him to bust us a pathway through the mountain, so we can get right through and reach the desert! I'll go see him right now!"

"Hmm…" Ebi sighed as Ash left the room. "The Super Fiends… they've been often called the most notorious criminals to ever walk this earth… and yet Ash is not only capable of fighting at an even level with them, now he's even talking to them like friends and getting favours from them?" he shook his head… absolutely unheard of…

(Meanwhile)

"So you'll do it?!" Ash exclaimed excitedly at Cleft's response, "Thanks a lot, man!"

"Don't mention it" said Cleft, as Ash ran off happily, "Heh… he may be a first-class fighter, but at heart, he's still just a kid…" he chuckled. He had agreed to bust them a pathway through the mountain.

"He's more than that, you know…" said Bonsai, stepping into the scene. Right now, he had a number of bandages around his chest area. "During the battle, I saw something you wouldn't believe… that boy could wield the Power of One."

"HUH?!" Cleft exclaimed, turning around, "ARE YOU SERIOUS?!"

"Afraid so" Bonsai chuckled at his partner's reaction. "Things are getting VERY interesting… first Red Kaiser appears in this region… and now we find out Ketchum's the new Chosen One…" Bonsai closed his eyes and sighed, "You know what this means. We have to act fast, and get them out of this region."

"You're right… I'm getting to work right now." Said Cleft, sliding on his iron gauntlets and leaving the scene… "By tomorrow, the tunnel will be complete"

"We should also get going soon…" Bonsai nodded as he started gathering his things, "Chosen One or not, Ketchum is still no match for Red Kaiser… and if that man finds out about him… no doubt about it he'll destroy everything in this region simply to find him." He put his hands in his pockets as he looked up at the night sky, "It's best that you don't learn of the Kaiser Cult's existence yet, Ketchum… you aren't ready for the knowledge… and when you leave this area, you'll be safe from their reach. Even if just for a little while…"

_As night falls over Scarlet City, people are celebrating, their fears gone now that the Missingno Gang is no more… but as one threat disappears a new one seems to be taking its place. The now broken gang seemed to have some sort of connection with them… Just what is the Kaiser Cult? And what are its purposes? As the group prepares to travel east, they may just find these answers_

(TO BE CONTINUED)


	16. The Sand Raiders

Chapter 16- The Sand Raiders

_Even though I defeated the Missingno Gang and Team Rocket has stopped pestering us for now, my problems are far from over. Everywhere I go, I find trouble, and it clings to me like a stench. This is the price I pay for helping out those in need. With all the danger I've been facing, I always sigh in relief that I survived to see another sunrise. But everything I've faced until now was just practice… because I was soon to discover the existence of a force unlike anything this world has ever seen… I had no idea just what I was facing at the time, nor did I even begin to comprehend how monstrous our enemy is, and how deep their power runs. The bane of humanity, the power that could one day consume this world… the force known simply as the Kaiser Cult…_

_-Ash Ketchum_

(Location- Mountain Clusters)

"HAAAA!"

**CRAAAAAACK!**

"Heh… finally… done…!" Cleft panted, smiling to himself as he stepped out of the tunnel he had smashed, running right through the mountain cluster which separated one side with its green forests to the other with a vast desert. Cleft sighed as he slumped down to the ground, removing his helmet and taking a swig from his canteen. "This oughta repay the favour. The shortcut will save those guys three days of climbing and mountain crossing" he said out loud, to no one in particular. "Well… I'd better get going…" he sighed as he stood up and brushed himself off. "Even though it was only a temporary alliance, I enjoyed it. Good luck in the rest of your journeys, Ash Ketchum…" He smirked as he continued walking. He was then joined by Bonsai, and the two Super Fiends walked off into the distance…

(Location- Marble dessert)

"OH YEAH! NOW THIS IS WHAT I CALL TRAVELLING IN STYLE!" Tracey stood up and yelled. The Marble dessert was pretty windy place, and because of this, they have decided to use this to their advantage. While Ash and Misty were busy gathering items, Ebi, Brock and Tracey had built the special sled. It was shaped similar to a raft, so it could carry many people at once, but the sail and its design made it so it could move on the sand, and the wind would push them.

"If we travel like this, we won't have to worry about the heat, because that cool breeze we're getting from the ride! YAHOO!" Brock held on to the mast and raised his hand in the air; he was enjoying the ride very much.

"I gotta hand it to that Super Fiend!" Ebi called out, standing and enjoying the breeze, "If he hadn't created that shortcut, it'd have been impossible to carry this thing and we'd have had to walk! Wasn't this a great idea or what?"

"ONLY FOR YOU…!" Ash was sweating and grunting in effort. He was riding in front of them on the QuickSilver, and tied around his shoulders and arms were two ropes connected to the front of the sand sled. Because the wind was blowing in the opposite direction, someone would have to get out and push, or in this case, pull. "I thought we agreed on everybody pulling their own weight, but here I find myself doing it for you! Maybe if you guys weren't too lazy to walk, I wouldn't have HEAVY burdens that you guys are, literally resting on my shoulders! Couldn't you have at least tied those ropes to the QuickSilver and NOT me?!"

"Yeah, I suppose we could've done that. Remind us next time we decide to cross the desert on a sled!" Ebi called back, while everyone else laughed.

"Stop complaining! We're losing speed! Now MUSH!" Misty yelled and cracked a whip

"YEOOOW! KNOCK IT OFF MISTY!" Ash shouted "If I go any faster, we can lose control and you guys will probably crash (not that you don't deserve it) but it'll rip my arms off in the process! If you wanna speed things up, couldn't you at least get rid of that sail?! For crying out loud, the wind's blowing in the opposite direction!"

"Removing the sail will kind of ruin the point of sailing!" Tracey called out and everyone laughed out loud

"GRRRRR…" Ash growled, "If you guys don't stop making fun of me, I just might let you go, sending you-WAAAH!" Ash yelled. A jet of flames shot out of nowhere. It burned through the left tip of the sail, set the mast on fire and barely missed Ash. Ash could feel the heat of the flames passing just inches away from his head.

"WHAT WAS THAT?!" Brock shouted

"OVER THERE! LOOK!" Tracey pointed behind them. Chasing them was a group of men, each of them riding various pokémon or desert vehicles. They each wore goggles over their eyes and cloaks and scarves around their neck and shoulders to protect them from the sun and sand. By the looks of things, they were armed, and that blast of fire came one riding a Rapidash. "Bandits!?"

The hoard of sand raiders was gaining up on them, and in the front of them all was a desert speeder that hovered above the ground, and carried one in particular who stood out among the raiders. He wore a white turban and white cape, along with a scarf that covered the bottom part of his face. Hanging from his belt was a shining, razor-sharp scimitar. Clearly, this one was the leader. Although the speeder was being driven at a very high speed and steering hard, he stood straight up with his arms crossed, not even flinching or showing any signs of caution or fear.

"We have to speed up, let's jettison anything useless that'll slow us down!" Ebi shouted, and then turned to Brock, "You! Jump off!"

"WHAT?! Why me?!" Brock shouted

"Quit thinking about yourself no-eyes, and nobly sacrifice your life for us!" said Ebi

"Hey, I got a better idea! Why don't we throw YOU off instead?!" shouted Brock

"Because my life is actually worth something!" Ebi argued back

"Oh, and mine isn't?!" Brock said angrily

"WILL YOU TOO KNOCK IT OFF AND GET RID OF THAT STUPID SAIL ALREADY?! IT'S BURNING ANYWAYS!!!" Ash shouted over the two. Quickly, they did what he said, undoing the rope and letting the flaming cloth fly through the air…

"AAHH!!!" The rapidash rider in the front screamed as the burning sail hit him and his pokémon, causing both to fall into the sand and get left behind.

"Ah!!! Look guys, the mast is on fire!" Tracey pointed at the mast

"Then let's get rid of it too! It's useless anyways now that the sail's gone!" Misty said, taking out her sledgehammer… "HAAA!!!" she swung it at the base, smashing through the wood and causing it to tip over, off the sled and roll down the sand…

**CRASH!!!**

The burning mast slammed into the front of the desert speeder, causing it to spin out of control and smash into several other of the bandits.

"Success!" the team cheered… but that soon changed when they saw the leader… Even though the vehicle spun out of control, he leapt high into the air and landed cleanly on his feet, and began chasing them on foot… "Oh… my… god…" they gasped as they saw him ran…. he was moving even faster than the speeder he was riding on! Drawing his scimitar, he had caught up with them and was running beside them!

"Ah…! WATCH OUT! THERE'S MORE OF THEM COMING!" Ebi shouted, pointing at a sand dune to the side, as more of these bandits came out and chased them, "Grrr…! This was a planned attack!" he growled, "ASH! There's no point in running anymore! We can't escape them in their territory!"

"Way ahead of ya!" Ash grinned, understanding what Ebi was getting at. They'd just have to take the fighting to them!" However, just as he was about to release, the raider dressed in white slashed the two ropes Ash was pulling. "WAAAA!!!!" Ash screamed, suddenly spinning out of control, "STOOOP!!!" Ash screamed out, trying desperately to regain control, "WA!!! GUYS! WATCH OUT! IN FRONT OF-OOF!" Ash shouted as he crashed into the sand

"AH!" Ash's friends gasped when they saw what was ahead. They were heading straight for a large rock! "JUMP!" They quickly dove off the side of the raft…

**CRASH!**

The sled had crashed into the face of the gigantic rock and shattered to pieces. Ash got up and joined the others. Everyone had their pokémon ready. The riders surrounded them, and skidded to a halt, cornering them against the rock. "You better explain yourselves! Out of the way!" Ash growled

"Pikachu!" Pikachu agreed with Ash

"What are you, bandits or something?" Asked Ebi

"My orders were to keep outsiders like you out!" the leader of these desert raiders shouted down at the group as he stood atop the large rock. "HMM!!" He kicked off the rock and flipped through the air, landing gracefully in front of them. "You foreign scum will not take a step any further, unless you'd rather die at the hands of KN-05, White Kaiser!" He shouted down at them, "Turn back now, or face the consequences of enslavement or death!"

"Um… group huddle!" Ash called out

"This White Kaiser guy seems pretty serious!" Said Brock as everyone huddled

"Serious doesn't describe him, he's completely out of his mind! And did you see him move!? He must be incredibly strong! That sword of his looks like it can cut more than just a couple of ropes!" Said Tracey

"But don't forget that we HAVE to travel east! I don't know anything about any territorial junk or whatnot, but this is more important!" Said Ebi

"This guy's definitely got connections with that Red Kaiser… but right after he explained his mission, he called that Kaiser Beast to attack us! But that was in the forest and full of dark trees where we can't see anything! There doesn't seem to be any Kaiser Beasts here!" Said Brock

"This is a desert. There's a possibility it could be hiding under the sand, or he could even be carrying it in a pokéball." Said Ebi

"It doesn't matter" Said Ash, "Even if he has a Kaiser Beast, I'll just blast it like I did the last one…" he looked at White Kaiser, "And he himself shouldn't be too tough…"

"But he said the consequences would be death for us, or possible slaves!" said Brock

"You mean… we could really be killed?" asked Tracey uneasily

"Turning around's not an option. It's a choice between slavery and death" Ebi sighed

"Shouldn't we have a vote on it or something?" asked Tracey

"No… I trust Ash…" said Misty, "I'll go with any decision you make"

"Hm…" everyone else nodded in agreement. "Go on, it's your call." Said Ebi

"Then we all know the answer…" Ash then turned to White Kaiser and made a VERY rude gesture with his fingers, "THAT'S our answer!"

"And what is that supposed to mean?" asked White Kaiser

"It means that we'll be trash you and the rest of you freaks! PIKACHU! ATTACK!" Ash shouted as he and Pikachu jumped into battle. Pikachu's lightning attack shot forwards, but White Kaiser jumped to the side, and instead the lightning struck a vehicle carrying four raiders, causing it to explode

"GRRR! FIRE!" The bandits armed with guns aimed at the group…

"ONIX GO!!!" Before they even grabbed the guns, Brock had already released Onix. The stone snake appeared and shielded them from the gunfire. The bullets had no effect on Onix's stone body. "Heh! Now's my time to shine! A dessert battlefield is the perfect place for my rock pokémon! TAKE DOWN! MEGA PUNCH! SCREECH!" Brock shouted, also releasing Geodude and Crobat. The three struck fast and hard, Crobat's screech forced them to drop their weapons and cover their ears, while Onix and Geodude smashed into them with their stone bodies, sending them flying in every direction. Immediately, the others in the team joined in too

"Staryu! Starmie! Double Edge!" Misty yelled. Staryu and Starmie flew like shurikens and slammed their targets to the ground, out cold

"BUBBLEBEAM!" Tracey told Maril to attack. Maril launched his water attack. Thousands of bubbles flew like a machine gun, continuously striking them

"PIKACHU! THUNDER ATTACK!!!" Ash shouted. The lightning struck a vehicle, causing it to explode and sending those standing around it flying. "First strike, absolute success!" Ash clapped the dust and sand off his hands. "See how much your guns and weapons can do against the spirit of real pokémon trainers!" Suddenly, it something occurred to him… the leader, he wasn't among the fallen raiders! "Wait… that White one… where did he go?!" he exclaimed, looking left and right… Suddenly, he felt something. It was his trainer instincts, they were warning him… DANGER!!! "URGH!" Ash spun around and raised the QuickSilver, clutching it in both hands, shielding himself from a slash from White Kaiser's scimitar. "AH!" Ash gasped, though he blocked that blow, he didn't react fast enough when White Kaiser's other fist shot up and uppercutted him, throwing him through the air and hitting the ground, the QuickSilver flew out of his hands. Ash quickly shook it off and made a dash for the QuickSilver, quickly grabbing it. He had to equip it fast…

"AN OPENING!" White Kaiser lunged at him, swinging his sword down before Ash was ready… "Hmm?" his eyes widened slightly when his sword was suddenly stopped.

"Geo…!" Geodude growled, having appeared between White Kaiser and Ash, and caught the blade of the scimitar between his palms.

"And just what makes you think I'll let you attack my friend before he's ready?" Asked Brock, he was the one who commanded Geodude to stop the sword… but something was strange… Geodude seemed to be having a lot of difficulty holding this man's sword back… Geodude should have been able to overpower him!

"Hmm…" a smile crossed White Kaiser's face. Instead, he turned around and swung the sword at Brock, with Geodude hanging on the end!

"AGH!" Brock screamed and fell back, "Ah… agh!!!" He gasped, writing in pain from being slammed by Geodude's solid stone body!

"Hey! You're not gonna-AAAH!" Ash was about to attack, but White Kaiser swung his sword with Geodude hanging on and slammed him across the face. Ash fell onto his back "That was a lot more painful than it looked…" He sweatdropped

"GEODUDE! JUST LET GO OF THAT SWORD ALREADY!" Brock yelled and got up. White Kaiser swung the sword as Geodude let go, sending the rock pokémon crashing into his face. Brock fell over on his back, "Geodude…" he growled, "Pray you don't grow a neck anytime soon… because I would so be strangling you right now…"

"Geo!" Geodude slapped him

"We have to disarm him first! Get rid of the sword!" Ebi yelled from the sidelines. He was no fighter, or pokémon trainer, so the best he could do was observe and try to think of a way to beat him.

"Onix! Use bind!!!" Brock shouted. Onix roared lunged at White Kaiser, but he was faster, dodging left and right, not giving Onix the chance to coil around him. "A slippery one eh? Then let's see how you handle this! ROCK THROW!!!"

"You may be good at dodging, but no one can evade SWIFT!!!" Ash shouted. Following these two commands, the battlefield was literally being showered with a rain of flying boulders and stars, all being fired at a single target. White Kaiser evaded every rock with ease, and deflected the stars with his sword. "You're good, really good… but can you handle this?! PIDGEOT! SAND ATTACK!!!"

"AGH!!!" White Kaiser exclaimed, surprised when the bird pokémon flapped its giant wings and sent sand flying right into his eyes…!

**-CRACK-**

"NGH!" White Kaiser exclaimed, as one of the rocks slammed into his body, throwing him right off his feet and hitting the ground.

"Yes!!!" Ash and Brock cheered, White Kaiser was down! "Ah!" they both gasped when they saw, he was getting back up!

"You've got to be kidding!" exclaimed Ash

"Hmph… how humiliating" White Kaiser growled, shaking his head and standing back up… "I've gotten soft, to let myself fall like that to such a light blow."

"A light blow…?! Is he serious?! He got slammed by a boulder!" Gasped Brock, "What is it with all these people these days?! All these humans taking the full brunt of pokémon attacks and not even trying to at least PRETEND it hurts?!"

"Who needs to pretend?" White Kaiser spoke bitterly, "Pitiful children with your meagre pets cannot even begin to compare with a Kaiser Knight…"

"SCYTHER! SLASH!" Tracey yelled, as Scyther bolted to White Kaiser from behind and swung his right talon downward…

**-CLANG-**

The sound of metal clashing rang through the air, after White Kaiser turned around and lifted his scimitar above his head, completely blocking the attack. "HMM!!!!" White Kaiser struck with his left elbow, smashing Scyther in the stomach and sending him flying back

"AH! SCYTHER!!!" Tracey yelled, running to his injured pokémon

"Attacking me from behind… like I would fall for something like that…"

"Maybe, but can you dodge bullets?" Misty said with her arms crossed, "ATTACK NOW! ICE BULLETS!!!" she shouted, pointing at White Kaiser. Staryu and Starmie had each fired bubble attacks, and Politoed had frozen them in mid-air with blizzard. By combining the two attacks, they had changed fast-flying bubbles into rock-hard projectiles, and even White Kaiser didn't have the chance to dodge!

"NGH!" One after the other, White Kaiser was being pelted with thousands of solid ice bullets. Even this was too much for him to dodge and deflect… so he had no choice but to defend himself, firmly planting his feet into the ground and shielding himself with his arms in the 'X' position… "UGH!" While he was so focused on blocking from the ice bullets to the front, Geodude lunged from the side and smashed his stone fist to the side of his face, knocking him off balance, "AGH!!!" Onix's tail slammed him from behind, and he fell forward, the scimitar flew out of his grip… White Kaiser growled, he was down on his knees…

"ICE PILLAR!!!" Ash and Misty shouted. All their water pokémon fired water attacks, while Politoed froze it all into a solid pillar, flying to White Kaiser…

**SMASH!!!**

"AH…!" the team gasped. Just as ice pillar was about to hit him, White Kaiser had smashed it to pieces with his bare fist! "I… impossible!"

"I have had enough of this fight…" White Kaiser said bitterly, standing up and wiping the dirt off his face. "I was being merciful when I gave you the choice to turn back… but now it is too late. You heathens are beyond redemption…" he clenched his fists… "HAAA!!!" Suddenly, he darted forward, right past any of the pokémon that stood ready for battle, right for Ash! "RHA!!!"

**-THUNK-**

"AH…!!" Ash's eyes opened wide, his mouth hung open, when White Kaiser had slammed his fist square into his stomach… "NGH…! Agh…" Ash immediately collapsed to his knees, trembling, clutching his stomach… The pain he felt from White Kaiser's punch… it was so strong…!

"HMM!!!" White Kaiser didn't waste time watching Ash suffer, and went for Misty's pokémon. "RHA!!" He leapt off the ground and sailed through the air, his foot smashed straight into Starmie's jewel, shattering it. Quickly he turned around, breaking Staryu's jewel with his fist. "HA!!!" He spun around and slammed his foot across Politoed's face, sending it flying and crashing into the rock.

"AH…!" Misty gasped. This man… he had attacked them for no reason, and now he's gone as far as to attack Ash and injure her pokémon… "WHY YOU…!" She screamed, reaching for another pokéball…

**-SMACK-**

"AAAH!!!" Misty screamed when White Kaiser spun around and slammed her with his fist, throwing her through the air and hitting the ground, "Unh… agh…!" she lay on the ground, her eyes closed and writhed in pain…

"MISTY!!!" Ash exclaimed, immediately standing back up on his feet, his pain completely forgotten as anger surged through him… "KAISEEEER!!!!" He roared, charging towards White Kaiser, clenching his right armoured fist… "HAAAAA!!!!"

**SMASH!!!**

"AAAAGH!!!" White Kaiser screamed, his head flung back as Ash's armoured fist smashed into his face with such force, his body was sent flying through the air and crashed into the ground.

"Hah… hah…" Ash stood there, panting heavily, sweat poured from the side of his face. "Grr…" He growled, and took a fighting stance, as White Kaiser was getting up…

"Ngh… Argh…" White Kaiser slowly rose to his feet, but stumbled. He was panting heavily, his mouth hung open as he was gasping for air. "GRR…" he clenched his teeth as he turned to Ash. "That strength… how could a child hit so hard…" his eyes narrowed on his opponent. "Hmm…!" His feet shifted, as he took a fighting stance. This boy wasn't normal. He had to treat him like a serious enemy… "HMM!!!" Suddenly White Kaiser darted forward, running past any pokémon that stood in his way. He wasn't going to waste time fighting anyone other than the boy…

"RHAA!!!" Ash shouted, lunging forward and swinging his right arm towards White Kaiser, but the warrior caught it in his hand. Ash's eyes opened wide as he saw a smirk cross the warrior's lips, he reacted immediately, pulling his arm out of the QuickSilver just as White Kaiser twisted it a full 180 degrees. If Ash hadn't pulled his arm out just then, it would've been broken. "UGH!" Despite having saved his arm, White Kaiser swung the board and slammed it across Ash's face, causing him to spin and fall to the ground, "Argh…!" Ash growled, clutching the side of his face…

"You are quite talented as a fighter… but you lack the strength to face me…" White Kaiser smirked, holding the QuickSilver in his arms. Clutching the board, he felt even he wouldn't be able to break it… but the clips… "Heh…" he snapped them off and threw them to the side. Now it was impossible for Ash to use it as a weapon…

"Grrr!!!" Ash sprung to his feet and jumped back, putting some distance between him and the warrior while his hands reached for his pokébelt, but White Kaiser's eyes didn't miss the movements, and he wasn't about to let Ash call out any more pokémon… "UGH!" Ash gasped, his shoulders hunched over and body fell forward when White Kaiser tackled him in the gut, knocking him to the ground. Ash struggled to get up, but White Kaiser stepped down hard on his chest… "AGH…!"

"ASH!" Pikachu, Brock, Tracey, and even Ebi ran towards White Kaiser…

"AAAHHH!!!!" Ash screamed out loud when White Kaiser pressed his foot down harder on his chest, and his friends immediately stopped.

"I'm sure you'll know what happens should you take another step…" White Kaiser smiled evilly. Ash was at his mercy, he could kill him any time he wanted to. He laughed as he saw Pikachu growling, his cheeks sparking, yet unable to do anything. All the people around him, all their pokémon as well, even if he wasn't holding Ash hostage like that, they wouldn't be able to do anything to him…

"Hey Kaiser…" a deep voice called from behind. Unwittingly, White Kaiser turned his head… "HAAA!!!!"

**SMASH!!!!**

"AAAGH!!!!" White Kaiser screamed, he was thrown right off his feet, and his body literally went flying through the air and crashed into the large rock.

"AH…" Everyone gasped when they saw who attacked White Kaiser. There he stood, with spiky blond hair, a massive figure, the gigantic Super Fiend, G.I. Jolt!

"G.I. JOLT!?! What are you… doing here?" Ash quivered

"Nothing much… and certainly not saving you…" G.I. Jolt growled, not looking at Ash. "I came here for one reason… him." He pointed at White Kaiser in the distance

"Hmph…!" White Kaiser shook his head and stood up, as if the punch had no effect. "Grrr… it's you…" he growled, seeing the Super Fiend, "One of the followers of Sky Render… G.I. Jolt, am I correct?" He took a fighting stance, his eyes focused entirely on the Super Fiend, it seemed he forgot about Ash, "You know which one of us is stronger… yet you're actually challenging me?"

"HMM!!" G.I. Jolt cracked his knuckles. "Hey… Ketchum" he called over to the pokémon trainer, "You expect to reach Sky Render at that pathetic level?"

"Wa?" Ash blinked, confused as the battle started, and the Super Fiend and Kaiser Knight charged at each other…

"RHAAA!!!" G.I. Jolt swung his fist down, but the knight dodged and spun in the air, slamming him across the face with a powerful roundhouse kick. Jolt's entire body stumbled back, from the powerful impact, yet he growled and straightened up, lunging forward and grabbing White Kaiser's smaller body, lifting him over his head, "HAAA!!!" He shouted, smashing him to the ground head first… But despite having his head slammed right into the sand, White Kaiser showed no sigh of pain, and kicked upward, slamming Jolt's chin and knocking him back. "Grrr…!" the two of them growled, not saying a word. The two charged at each other, switching powerful blows one after the other. They were evenly matched!

"Ah…!" Ash gasped, "G.I. Jolt's strong… no… POWERFUL!" He said, remembering Jolt's superhuman strength, "But that White Kaiser is so small, yet his strength matches his exactly! No… it even surpasses him!" Ash gasped as he saw White Kaiser gaining the upper hand, slamming Jolt's face and causing him to reel back. "How can any human being have so much strength?!"

"Urgh…!" Jolt stumbled back and collapsed to his knees, panting heavily. "The answer is just that… he isn't human!"

"So this is the Herculean strength of G.I. Jolt? You're no match for me!" White Kaiser sneered, "In strength, speed and skill… I'm completely superior!"

"You're right… I can't beat you alone…" Jolt smirked… "NOW!"

"AH…!" White Kaiser's eyes opened wide, as a figure suddenly sprung from the sand behind him, and he felt a piercing in his back. Looking down, he saw a blade sticking out right through his chest "WHAT?!"

"AAH!!!" Ash, Brock, Tracey, and Ebi gasped, Misty screamed and covered her eyes…

"Doton no jutsu… the ground cloaking technique" Standing behind White Kaiser was the one who stabbed right through him. The icy ninja Super Fiend… AntiArctic! "HM!" he pulled out the Ninja-To (small sword used by ninjas) and sheathed it

"Urgh…! You!" White Kaiser growled, turning around and seeing the icy Super Fiend…

"Ah…!" What shocked Ash more than there being two super fiends, was the fact that White Kaiser had been stabbed right through the heart and was still alive! There was no blood, no wound, no sign of injury other than a hole in his shirt!

"We told you Ketchum… this man is not at all human… not anymore at least…" AntiArctic spoke, "White Kaiser is the result of a horrible technology that goes against the very basis of nature… to cast aside his very flesh and blood, and replace them with the power of machines and steel! He's no longer human… he is Kaiser!"

Ash, Misty, Brock, Tracey and Ebi gasped at what Jolt had said. It couldn't be possible… but for him to be that strong… and to be able to survive a mortal wound without flinching…! That was the only explanation!

"You are correct… I am what you people would call a 'cyborg'… a human who has been blessed with this invincible body…" White Kaiser took a fighting stance, "I have given everything for this power, and I am now invincible! STRENGHT AND POWER MEANS EVERYTHING IN THIS WORLD! THE WEAK DESERVE THEIR FATE!" He charged to finish ran forwards to finish G.I. Jolt off

"HMM!!!" AntiArctic struck his palm to the ground… "HA!" suddenly, a layer of ice formed beneath White Kaiser's feet, causing him to slip and lose balance…

"HAAA!" Jolt shouted, smashing his fist against White Kaiser's face

"URGH!" White Kaiser was thrown back and hit the ground. "Argh…!" he growled at AntiArctic, and quickly turned to attack him

"HM!" AntiArctic dodged left and right, evading White Kaiser at every step. His movements were incredible, and even White Kaiser couldn't keep up with him! "What makes you think you can outstep a ninja?!" AntiArctic swung his leg upward, a thick layer of ice froze over his shin… "HA!!!" he kicked White Kaiser across the face

"Agh…! ARGH!" White Kaiser was getting madder by the second, but with the arrival of this icy super fiend who did everything to hinder his movements, while the large one kept smashing him with his strength, he was at a disadvantage! "GRRR!" As AntiArctic attacked, White Kaiser reached down and grabbed his scimitar… "HAAA!!!"

**-SLASH-**

"AH!" Ash and his friends gasped. White Kaiser stabbed through AntiArctic's body!

"Heheheh…!" White Kaiser smiled, and laughed insanely! He got him…! "WHAT?!" suddenly he saw it! On the end of his sword wasn't the Super Fiend… but a log!?

"Kawarimi no jutsu… the substitution technique…" AntiArctic stood behind White Kaiser, holding the Ninja-To… "Even your strength is no match for the arts of the ninja!" he smirked, as White Kaiser turned around, "Succession Technique: KOGOESHINU! (FREEZE TO DEATH!)" with all his strength, he stabbed into White Kaiser's body… but this time, instead of a simple stab, he had concentrated his powers through the small blade, and inside White Kaiser's body, everything was beginning to freeze!

"Ah…! Aagh…!" White Kaiser gasped, shivering… the cold spread through his body… everything was frozen… he couldn't move at all…!

"ARMAGEDDON FIST!" Jolt ran towards the immobilized white Kaiser, and swung his arm. Electricity crackled around his fists and sparks flew through the air. There was a huge crash that sounded like thunder as he slammed White Kaiser with a mighty slam. White Kaiser was sent flying into the sky, over the horizon. G.I. looked into the distance and could see tiny figure in the distance. He then pulled out a large bazooka, with the words 'BIG SHOT' painted on the side. "FIRE!" a gigantic rocket that flew through the air, homing in on the distant target. There was an explosion as it had hit its target, "Oh yeah!" G.I. Jolt cheered and turned around,

"Gah…" Everyone gasped… the one enemy who had effortlessly defeated them, pokémon and all… was taken down by these two Super Fiends!

"He's definitely survived, and he'll be coming back for us sooner or later… we better move. A drawn-out battle with him will surely result in our deaths." AntiArctic said, retaining the serious look on his face. "There is nothing left for us in this desert. Let's go…" he said simply, and walked off…

"Hmm…" Jolt didn't leave however, and instead turned to Ash. "Hey Ketchum…" he called out to him. "Don't bother thanking us, because as I said earlier, we did not come to help you… we only fought that man because he is our enemy… and because we believed you could've handled yourself better, though it seems we were wrong…" he growled, "Sky Render believes in you… that you have the potential to grow strong…" He shook his head and turned around, "But back there… that was pitiful"

"G… grr…" Ash clenched his teeth. Jolt was insulting him… but he was right. Ash was trembling… he really couldn't do anything about it "N… no! It's not my fault! They were the ones who started it! We were the ones being attacked!"

"And when they gave you the choice to leave or fight, what did you choose?" Asked Jolt, and Ash looked down. "You are a great pokémon trainer… more than skilled enough to win whatever pokémon league competition… but that's it. With your power, you can do little more than play in those games." He looked at Ash seriously, "The real world is much harsher than you think, and pokémon masters are worth nothing in the face of people like these. There are those who are strong, stronger than me, stronger than White Kaiser even! And many of them will make themselves your enemy! What will you do then?!" Ash closed his eyes and looked down… "If you want to have any hope of survival, you must grow strong, stronger than me even! The path you walk is a dangerous one, and if you go any further, the games will stop and battles will become those between life and death." Jolt paused, "The choice is yours. Return to the safe places and play in your _Pokémon Leagues_ if you think it's too tough… but remember what I told you…" and with that, Jolt left…

"Hmmm…" Ash clenched his fists tightly, saying absolutely nothing

"Ash?" Misty carefully approached him

"I am weak…" Ash finally spoke, looking down at his hands. "At my current level… I can definitely win the league… but against the world itself, I'm too small… HMM!" He closed his fist and looked at Jolt, "HEY JOLT!!!" He shouted to the Super Fiend in the distance, "YOU TELL SKY RENDER THAT I'LL BECOME STRONG! STRONGER THAN YOU! STRONGER THAN HIM! I WILL SURPASS EVERYBODY!" he shouted

"Hmm…" A smirk crossed Jolt's face, and he raised his hand high into the air, giving Ash a thumbs up. He smiled as he travelled further into the desert, and Ash and his group started moving along again. "You were right Sky… that boy has spirit like I've never seen before…" He spoke out loud, "Without a doubt, the next time I see him, he'll be a serious contender… probably even stronger than me…"

(Location- Team Rocket's Crash site)

"IT'S NOT FAAAAIIIR!" James whined, "RIGHT WHEN WE GET A NEW BALLOON, SOME NUT-JOB SUPER FIEND SHOOTS US DOWN!" Incidentally, the figure that G.I. Jolt fired that he thought was White Kaiser happened to be Team Rocket's balloon.

"Oh, quit complaining!" Jessie slapped James, shutting him up.

"Meowth… this bites…" Meowth sighed

_As the two Super Fiends and Ash's group leave their separate directions, they all know this isn't the last time they will meet. The world is vast, but those who walk the path of the strong shall cross, as is the fate of the warrior…_

(TO BE CONTINUED)


	17. The Soul Harvest

Chapter 17- The Soul Harvest

_My journey had taken me to places I never believed possible. This adventure I have lived from day one had been nothing less than a fantasy come to life. I've seen it all, sailed across the Ocean, hiked through the thickest forests, climbed over the tallest mountains and been to all from the biggest, brightest cities to the smallest most rural villages with different people and different cultures. I've met new friends and others with the same goal I have. This is why I wanted to become a pokémon trainer… so I could see the world, and I have gotten my wish. But if I also truly knew how tough the hardships really felt, I might've reconsidered. I have to be more than a pokémon master, I have to rise above everyone and become the strongest of all… I have to be strong if I want to live. It always feels like there's nothing left in this world that could surprise me, but I always seem to be wrong about that. Unexpected twists and turns litter my way, but no matter what, I will make it through one-way or another. New obstacles are coming, tougher than anything I have ever faced before…_

_Ash Ketchum_

(Location- Marble Desert)

It has been two days since they had fought white Kaiser and have been wandering the desert ever since. They were exhausted from the walking and really thirsty. Although they were able to heal their restore some health to their wounded pokémon with some of the Revives and Hyper Potions, it didn't change the fact that they were exhausted and low in supplies.

"That story is truly remarkable Ash!" said Professor Oak over the picture phone. Ash had told him about their adventure so far, from the Missingno Gang, Super Fiends up to the Kaisers and the UniStrike "And to think that scientists have been spending years trying to discover the ultimate attack! It seems that all of the single element ones have been found, but there are still things to say about combinations!"

"Yeah… well professor… I guess I just got that knack for pokémon! Heck, even without the super attacks, I can EASILY trounce pokémon masters and-WAK!" Ash was getting all big-headed when Ebi bumped him out of the way

"Maybe so, but teaching it to them is much more difficult. I've been watching Ash, and it was a lot of trouble just to master the simple HydroThunder!" Said Ebi

"Hmmm? I don't believe I've ever seen you before!"

"Oh! Pardon me! My name is Ebi, world's premier explorer (AND ultra genius!) pleased to make your-WAGH!" He yelped as Ash pushed him aside

"Um Professor? Feel free to tell this story to as many people in Pallet as you like, because I want EVERYONE to hear about the dangerous fights against the Super fiends and whatnot in full detail, and how I, SINGLE HANDEDLY triumphed over them all! Okay? WAAA!" Ash screamed when Ebi knocked him out of the way

"Ahem…" He cleared his throat and straightened up, "As I was saying, the techniques Misty invented are strong and easy to learn without putting anyone at risk during training, but Ash… though his HydroThunder can inflict a lot of damage to any sort of enemy, it puts the water pokémon at risk because there's a large chance of the electricity passing on to them if any mistakes have been made. I watched him teach his pokémon how to do it, and during the training, over 70 of the time, the electricity zapped his own pokémon. Also when training them for UniStrike, not one came out right, and he destroyed a great deal of nature for nothing, because the only time it ever worked was when he was against that Kaiser Beast. And speaking of training, don't even get me started on when he was using the pester balls… I had to remove them just for that reason…"

"Quiet!" Ash snapped at him

"Hey, I made those things for a different reason, and all you've been doing was using them to harass your own pokémon!" Ebi crossed his arms angrily

"Pester balls are only used for one thing, and that IS harassing pokémon. It's not Ash's fault that you just made it look fun to harass animals! If anyone's to blame, it's you for being so irresponsible, treating those balls like toys and giving them to an immature little kid" Brock patted Ebi on the back

"Immature?!" Ash exclaimed

"Hey! Nobody asked for your opinion, no-eyes!" Ebi pushed him

"No… eyes!?" Brock growled, "I never liked you from the start, you four-eyed toothpick, and I still haven't forgotten you trying to make me jump from the sled!"

"The feeling's mutual! And it's better have four eyes and a brain, unlike you! Maybe if you had EITHER, you could actually SEE why you've never gotten a date before, and KNOW why you'll be a reject for the rest of your life!"

"WHY YOU!!!"

Professor Oak and Tracey sweatdropped as Brock and Ebi suddenly pounced on each other and started brawling violently. Ash and Misty sighed, they've been with Ebi and Brock long enough to know the two didn't like each other…

"Shouldn't we stop them?" asked Misty

"Nah… just let 'em get it out of their systems…" replied Ash, "How bad could it be?"

"YOU BASTARD!!! I'LL KILL YOU!!!"

"NOT IF I KILL YOU FIRST, BASTARD!!!"

"URGH…!" Ash shook his head and sighed, finally deciding to intervene. Stepping into the fight, Ash grabbed the back of Brock's and Ebi's heads…

**BAM!!!**

"GAK!" the two of them exclaimed and fell unconscious when Ash bashed their heads into each other's. Ash sighed and clapped his hands, walking back to the phone

"Well… thanks for you time Professor Oak… and please make sure not to tell anybody about this…" Ash sighed, "(I'll probably end up the laughingstock of Kanto if they find out the people I actually hang out with)" he muttered and hung up

"Strange that they'd put a payphone like this in the middle of a dessert!" Said Misty, "How many people would use this thing?"

"You'd be surprised. You're about the seventieth people since this morning to use this payphone!" Said a passing-by nomad

"WAIT!" Ash called, "Um… mister, you wouldn't happen to know the way to Marble City? Because our friends and I are in kind of a predicament" Ash began to explain the situation, that they're lost and their pokémon need healing

"Well, if you want to reach a pokémon centre, then I suggest you go in that direction! Marble city is the only civilization you'll find for miles, and that's where you can get refreshments and all!" The nomad said cheerfully and handed them a detailed map of the desert

"Gah…" Misty sighed, "How could you survive in this temperature?"

"Well… you kinda get used to it over time! Although it seems rather hot for you, if you lived here long enough, you won't ever know how you survived without the heat! "Although recently, the travellers have lessened, what with the arrival of those lousy sand raiders and Fire Breather clan, business has been getting slow…"

"Well, the Sand Raiders have been beaten, but what exactly is the Fire-breathing clan?" asked Tracey

"You probably never heard about them, but they're infamous around these parts" said the nomad, "They're a group of fire-type supremacists who live out here in the desert, and use only fire pokémon. They're out to prove the superiority of fire types, and go around attacking anyone else. They especially hate water capabilities. You're a water-pokémon trainer, aren't you, young miss?" He asked and looked at Misty, "I suggest you stay clear from them, because if they see someone, especially you, they'll be merciless" He sighed and leaned against the payphone, "Well, good bye. Remember, if you see those guys, don't waste your time discussing anything with them, just run. They're not even worth your time fighting. Those circus freaks… the heat's fried their brains…" he bid them goodbye and turned around

Ash, Misty and Tracey left, dragging the unconscious Ebi and Brock. As they walked off in that direction, a lone figure covered in a dark blue cloak stepped forwards, his face was covered by his hood, "Sir, where exactly would this fire-breathing clan be?"

"I'm sorry, I really don't know their location, but I'm sure it's quite close…"

"Thank you sir" he said, and sighed "I overheard you say something about them being merciless to anyone who are of the water element, and that sickens me…" he crossed his arms, "And if anyone even THREATENS Misty, I swear, I'm gonna…"

"Don't tell me you're planning on fighting them!" The nomad "You're a water trainer yes? I can tell by the tone… but those guys are mad! If they saw you…"

"Maybe I'll go looking for them, maybe I won't. We'll see" said the hooded teenager, "But those guys need to be taught a lesson. I don't have anything against fire types, but there's just something about Supremacy Clans run by clowns dressed in ridiculous costumes and pointy hats that brings out the worst in me…"

"Uh…" the nomad blinked

"Anyone who uses violence to force their beliefs and persecution onto others are the lowest of human beings, and those kinds of people just need to be stepped on." He shook his head, "Anyways I just had a run in with a few of them just a few minutes ago, and they weren't so tough… hmmm?" he looked up a sand dune

"What?" The cheerful nomad wasn't so cheerful right now. He looked up at the sand dunes and saw several figures emerge, lots of them were fat, round and wore pointy clown hats, "YIPE! I'm outta here!" he yelped and ran off

"There he is!" A bruised, beaten fire breather with a partially torn outfit pointed at the cloaked stranger, "That's the guy who attacked us and beat us up!" He said. More fire breathers emerged from the sand dunes, in every direction.

"HIM?" Said the tallest, largest, fattest fire breather, who was evidently the leader "That little kid beat you two up? You told me he was huge!"

"We stand corrected, now just settle the score with him!" said a second badly-beaten fire breather wearing broken sunglasses and a broken pointy hat

"As I recalled, I was attacked by you guys for no reason!" said the hooded stranger

"They saw you handling water pokémon! And that's reason enough!" the leader pointed down at him, "Your filthy kind, watery scum, YOU are not welcome here!"

"Maybe so, but I have business here to take care off…" Said the hooded stranger

"Oh-ho! So you're here to fight us? Huh?!" He started laughing, as did the rest of them. "You see, I don't care who started the fight, but I'm not gonna let some snotty water-type trainer insult my crew and get away with it!" He growled, "I own this desert, and I decide what goes! And the first thing to go here is you! AFTER we're done with you that is!" he chuckled, while the others started laughing, cracking their knuckles or reaching for pokéballs…

"Hmph… how pathetic, claiming you own this desert. And you even have the nerve to attack people." He looked around, "I get the feeling there's no talking you out of this, since you came here looking for a fight…" He scoffed, "I feel sorry for fire-type trainers everywhere, it must be so embarrassing to be represented by a bunch of fat men running around the middle of the desert dressed in clown suits."

"Grr…!" the stranger's remark certainly struck a nerve, because the fire breathers were definitely mad. "WHY YOU…! GET HIM!!!" The leader barked, as many of them surrounded the stranger, some of them threw the pokéballs and releasd fire type pokémon. "ATTACK! BURN HIM TO A CRISP!!!"

**-FWOOSH-**

A wave of intense flames blew forth from the pokémon and breathers, but the stranger jumped high off the ground and flipped through the air, landing neatly on his feet on top of a sand dune. "You attacked first, so I will not be held responsible. HMMM!!!" He darted forward and attacked. His fist struck a magmar square in the face, knocking it cleanly off the ground and out cold. He then spun around and kicked a fire breather hard, sending him crashing into a group that was charging at him. "You shouldn't have started a fight with me"

"Urgh…!" The fire breathers and pokémon standing around him backed off, they were surprised by this young man's strength, "Who are you?!"

"It's about time you asked…" the stranger spoke as his right arm reached for the hood. Grabbing firmly, he threw the cloak off, revealing himself for all to see, "Aquamarine of the Super Fiends, pleased to make your acquaintance."

Upon seeing him, a round of gasps filled the area. 'THE Aquamarine?!' 'He's just a kid!' 'I thought he'd be at least ten feet tall!' these remarks were heard all around.

"Heh… this is perfect" The leader smiled wickedly, still not realising just who he was going against. "Beating you will not only prove that flames are the superior element, but we'll be famous for defeating one of the notorious Super Fiends! GET HIM!"

"You just don't get it, do you? HMM!!!" Aquamarine smacked one in the face and sent him flying. He darted forward, striking down anyone who came close. Human or pokémon, it made no difference to him, he was stronger than any of them. He shook his head and sighed, as many fire breathers and pokémon lay defeated around him. There were still many left, including the leader. "If that's all, then I'll get going. I'm a busy man, and I don't have the time to waste on the likes of you"

"Oh yeah?! Looks to me like I'll have to teach you some respect!" The leader shouted, throwing a pokéball, "Thyplosion! I choose you!" he shouted, releasing the fully evolved fire pokémon

"Hmph… and I still have to teach you some manners…" Aquamarine sighed, reaching to his belt… but instead of a pokéball, he pulled out an oddly-shaped macelike weapon, made of coral and concealed by his cloak. "I'm not even going to waste calling out my pokémon on a small fry like that"

"Then burn to death, Super Fiend! FLAMETHROWER!!!" The Fire-breather shouted. Thyplosion roared and fired a blast of flames at Aquamarine…

"HMM!" Aquamarine skilfully twirled the weapon in his right fingers as the fire came closer, "CORAL CUDGEL!" He shouted, slamming the weapon to the ground, HARD, causing a layer of sand to splash up and completely erasing the fire. "Even if I let it hit me, do you actually believe such a low-level attack can actually hurt me?" He spoke calmly, as he begun to approach the leader and his pokémon.

"Ah…!" the leader gasped, "T… t-thyplosion! Stop him! Use…!"

**SLAM!**

Thyplosion fell to the ground, after Aquamarine slammed the Cudgel across his face. "There's no one left to fight for you…" he spoke in a cold, harsh tone as he glared at him, face to face. Suddenly, his left hand shot forward and grabbed him by the face, and began to grip hard. "Let me show you just how I deal with rude people…"

"Ah-aaah…!" the leader gasped as Aquamarine tightened his grip, lifting him off the ground. His sunglasses cracked and fell, he tried to struggle but Aquamarine was just too strong… he was gonna crush his skull! "AH!!" he screamed and passed out

"Hm…" Aquamarine released his grip, letting the fire breather fall to the ground. He didn't break his skull or anything, as easy as it would have been to kill him, there was simply no point in killing scum like that. The imprint of his hand was left on the man's face, and by the looks of it, it would stay for a long time. Aquamarine's eyes moved left and right. The remaining fire breathers and pokémon were all trembling, terrified… "You have to the count of ten to run as fast as you can."

"AAAH!!!" All the fire breathers screamed as they turned around and ran…

"BLACK SQUALL!!!" Aquamarine shouted, sending a swirling powerful blast of wind and rain that launched all the fire breathers and pokémon flying high into the sky and thrown over the horizon. "Ten" he said simply and stood there alone. "Whew…" he sighed, leaning on the Coral Cudgel, "Now that I sent them all the way back to the circus they ran from sir, can you tell me where is Marble… Sir?" he looked around, "Mister Nomad?" he called out, and then smacked himself, "AW DAMMIT!!!" He shouted, remembering that the Black Squall had a huge radius, and he blasted off that nomad along with the circus clowns, even before he got to ask him where Misty (and that dead-man Ketchum) was going! Aquamarine looked around… the attack had completely blown away all the footprints, rearranged the dunes and changed the scenery. He had no idea where he was, or which direction was which, he was completely lost now!

(Location- Marble City)

The sun had set and the Marble desert had become cold. Even with the significant drop in the temperature, Ash and co. were all exhausted

"(pant) Don't ya find it really strange that there'd be a big city like this in the middle of the desert?" Brock asked, looking around. This place really reminded them of Neon Town, seeing how the city was in the middle of the desert, and there were bright lights and neon signs everywhere. The only difference between this place and neon was that it was active for reasons other than gambling. This place was made specifically for pokémon trainers and adventurers, and he could see people everywhere walking with their pokémon out of their pokéballs, or having pokémon battles against each other

"The first thing I want is to do is sleep in a nice soft bed!" said Misty

"Ditto! We've gotta go to the pokémon centre anyways to have my pokémon healed anyways!" said Tracey

"Not me! I'm starving!" said Brock

"Forget all of those! Just look at the all pokémon battles going on! I'm gonna battle everyone here and win!!" said Ash, "(And hopefully, I'll run into some crooked ones too so I'll also get to beat them up and take their money!)" he added silently

"Well, we can do all that, and more! But first we should set up priorities on what we should do first!" Said Ebi, "So first and most importantly we should go to the pokémon centre to have our pokémon healed…"

(Meanwhile, in a Dark Alleyway)

"So… um Meowth, do we have any ideas for an attack?" asked James

"Whaddaya askin' me for?" Meowth crossed his arms

"Well, the twerp's gotten awfully strong… way better than us…" Said Jessie, "I know we're no match for him anymore, but we've been at this for so long! Should we really give up trying to capture Pikachu so suddenly?" Asked Jessie, "We're asking you because you're the leader! Right?"

"Um… well… I…" Said Meowth, "I know we've trained hard and gotten way better… but it doesn't look like any of our efforts meant anything… not compared to him… he's just too strong…" he sighed and shook his head. "On the other hand, I've checked out the trainers in this city, and all of 'em are weak! If we just wait for the twerp to leave, this town'll be ours! Other than him, there's no one who can…"

**CRASH!**

"MEEOOOWCH!" Meowth was suddenly hit by an invisible force, sending him crashing into a bunch of garbage cans, blacking out. Jessie and James spun and saw who did it… a man, draped in a silver cloak that covered his face under a hood. From under his cloak, his hand reached out and aimed at Jessie…

"AAHH!" Jessie was thrown right off her feet by the same invisible force that hit Meowth, and sent her crashing into a stack of crates, losing consciousness. The man then turned to face James…

"Uh… stay back!" James stepped back nervously and placed his hand on his pokébelt

"You think you can actually fight me with that ugly beast?" Asked the stranger, with his other hand, removing his hood and revealing his face… Twin Dreamer!

"Ah…!" James gasped in fear, when he saw just who he was facing…! "Y-you're o-one of the S-S-Super Fiends… GAH!!" He exclaimed when he saw right next to him, the shadows on the wall suddenly gathering and taking shape… into that of a human!

"Hmm…" the shadow stepped right off the wall, transforming into a human dressed in black. His face wasn't covered, and James could clearly see him… it was Goth! "This is our battle…" he spoke coldly to James. From seemingly out of nowhere, he pulled out his large scythe and clutched it tightly, "Trash like you are in the way"

"Heh…" the two Super Fiends smirked as they looked at James, who was trembling uncontrollably at the sight of them… "Boo."

"EEEEEEEEEK!" James screamed in an unusually high-pitched voice, turning around and running as fast as he could… (THUD) right into a brick wall, "Ouch…" he fell to the ground, unconscious

"Hmph… pitiful" Goth closed his eyes and shook his head. "And to think that coward is actually considered strong… thankfully he isn't our target"

"Our target is Ketchum… he who stands in our way…" said Twin Dreamer, "If he is allowed to grow stronger, he will become a threat to us… and a threat to the world…"

"We cannot allow that, as we are the last ones who stand against the Deceiver…" Said Goth, "He knows nothing of the Cult, but may change soon. There's no telling whether or not he might even join it." He looked up into the sky and closed his eyes, "To challenge Sky Render is to support the cult… whether Ketchum realizes it or not. We must put a stop to it, no matter the cost, no matter who gets sacrificed… even if it might be us, we cannot allow it to continue…"

"Hmmm…" They both stood silently… "Let's go."

(Location- Pokémon centre)

"Your pokémon will be fully healed in exactly one hour" Nurse Joy accepted the pokémon from Ash, Misty, Brock and Tracey and placed them in the machine that recovers their health

"Thank you, Nurse Joy." They thanked her

"Where should we go now, guys?" Asked Ebi as they left the pokémon centre

"I say we eat!" Said Ash

"Yeah!" everyone else called out in agreement

"Pikachu!" Pikachu was also with them. He had already been fully healed with a Max potion, so he had no need for any treatment

(Meanwhile, on the rooftops)

"Almost ready, TD?" Goth Smirked and lifted his scythe into the air

"I told you to stop calling me that! You know I hate being called by my initials!" Twin Dreamer crossed his arms

"I still don't see why. It's got a nice ring to it…" said Goth

"Don't even start! Or else!" Twin Dreamer snapped at him

"Or else what?" Asked Goth, glaring seriously at him, causing him to reel back nervously. Twin Dreamer was strong, but he clearly knew which one of them was better. "That's more like it" Goth crossed his arms.

"So… is phase-one done yet?" asked Twin Dreamer, changing the subject

"If you'd just read my mind, then you'd know it is" Goth smirked and looked at hands, holding a watch, "I've planted the bomb I bought off Jolt…"

"Bought?" Dreamer crossed his arms

Goth sighed, "Fine… I stole it. No big deal" he looked at a watch, "I placed in the power plant and set to blow up. Total blackout coming in eighteen seconds…"

**-BOOM-**

An explosion rang in the distance. The lights all over the city blinked a few times, and then everything went out, with the exception of a few dim lights.

"Urgh… Jolt's watch is a piece of junk…" Goth sighed, shaking his head and tossing the stolen watch aside. "So… shall we get started?" he asked, raising his scythe

"Ready when you are!" Twin Dreamer levitated high into the air "Time for phase-two!" Twin Dreamer raised his hands into the air. A large ball of shining energy formed above. "TWIN DREAM!" he fired down two beams from each hand. The two joined together and spiralled down towards Goth

"Power of Darkness! Unite with the Power of Dreams and amplify your power!" Goth twirled his scythe over his head as the Twin Dream came down, "Unite! Target everyone in this city, leave only Ash Ketchum standing!" Goth yelled as his scythe shone with purple negative aura, "SOUL HARVEST!" he shouted. There was a bright flash of light as the dark energy gathered. In every direction around him, a gigantic wave of evil energy flew…

(Location- Marble city streets)

"What's that!?" Ash shouted

"First the power out, now this!" Brock yelled

"What's going on?!" Misty yelled

"I don't know, but it doesn't look good!" shouted Tracey

Ebi had a grim look on his face. The wave passed through buildings and everything. Even though not a single window cracked or anything broke at that moment, chaos was ringing through the city. People were screaming as the wave passed, but the screaming immediately came to a halt. He had known all about the Super Fiends, and he had seen this attack before, and he knew what was going to happen "Ash?" he said, everyone turned to him, "Listen to me. There's not much time. You kept the shining sphere, right?"

"Um… yeah" Ash pulled it out of his pockets. The bright shine from it illuminated the whole area

"Hey! Don't hold it out for everyone to see!" Ebi snapped and Ash placed it back in his pocket, "Listen, I can't explain things right now, but the only pokémon you have with you is Pikachu, and basically you're unarmed and carrying a very valuable treasure in your pockets. Listen fast. I managed to fix the clips so it could attach to your arm, but above all things, keep that sphere hidden until you recover the QuickSilver, and don't try to fight until you reach the centre…" he closed his eyes. He didn't get to finish because the dark wave had reached them

"AAAAAAAAH!" Brock yelled

"YEAAAAAGH!" Tracey screamed

"EAAAAAGH!" Misty screamed

"…" Ebi stood there with his eyes closed. He knew what was going to happen, and therefore didn't react.

The wave passed them through them, and they faded away. Everything went silent…

…

… …

… … …

… … … …

"Ash?" Misty looked around in the darkness, "ASH!"

"Waaa…" Ash got up, his head was spinning

"What happened to everyone?" Misty asked

"I don't know…"

"Pika…"

"How come we weren't affected?"

"I don't know…" said Ash

Togepi chirped in Misty's arms, and she looked down… "I wonder, what happened?"

Flashback

"EAAAAAGH!" Misty screamed

"Togi-togi-togiPRIIIIII!" Togepi chirped, waving its tiny arms left and right. A protective blue aura surrounded her body as the wave passed

End of Flashback

"I'm scared…" Misty grabbed Ash's hand and held it tight

"Me too…" Ash held her close

"What happened to everyone?" Misty asked

"I wish I knew. Ebi knows something we don't. He always does" Ash sighed

"He told us to go to the pokémon centre. Maybe that's the best choice"

**Heh-heh-heh…** they heard some eerie laughter in the darkness

"What was that?" As looked around

"I don't care what you think, but there are better solutions than listening to a nobody (literally)!" that creepy voice spoke, "Like hiding perhaps?"

"Ah…" Misty huddled up closer to Ash

"Wa…" said Ash, partly from the shock of a disembodies voice, and partly from the shock of Misty being so close to him right now

"Remember me?" out of the air, a young man landed on the ground and stood up straight, it turns out he is a Super Fiend "I can understand why Ketchum is still standing, but that doesn't explain why SHE'S still here!" He struck a fighting stance, "You know who I am, TWIN DREAMER!"

_NAME: Twin Dreamer_

_WEAPONS: Psychic Power_

_ATTACKS: Twin Dream, Mind Burn, Psychic Stun, Healing Wave_

_CLASS: Spell Caster, Psychic Element_

_RANK: A_

"HUH?!" Both Ash and Misty backed off nervously, "What's he doing here?"

"That's for you to know. But I'm the one you should be more worried about" Another voice spoke up behind them, "After all, between the two of us, I'm stronger."

"Huh? WA!" Ash and Misty yelped

A shadow leaped off the wall, it was the Super Fiend, Goth! He smirked and raised his scythe, "Your time has come!"

_NAME: Goth_

_WEAPONS: Demon Scythe_

_ATTACKS: Mortal Reaper, Shadow Stalker_

_CLASS: Assassin, Dark Element_

_RANK: A_

"This'll be easy! Makes me wonder why everyone's so scared of you!" Twin Dreamer smirked. He charged up glowing energy in his hands and aimed them down at Ash and Misty "TWIN DREAM!" He fired two beams of psychic energy, which spiralled across each other and flew at a high speed

"WAA!" Ash dove to the left and Misty to the right. Both of them missed the attack

"So you managed to dodge it…" Twin Dreamer smirked and charged another one. "Here's the one you won't be able to dodge! MIND BURN!" Instead of a narrow beam shooting down, it was a wave of psychic energy heading towards them

"CAPTURE!" Ash quickly grabbed one of those element-capture balls Ebi made and threw it at the wave. The ball opened up as it hit the psychic wave, and as if a pokémon was being captured, the psychic energy flew into the ball. The element-capture ball immediately flew back to Ash's hand and switched to a silver colour. It was now a psychic-attack ball

"WHAT?! How dare you!" Twin Dreamer growled, and charged up another Twin Dream, but he wasn't fast enough

"PIKACHUUUUU!" Pikachu leapt into the air and electrocuted him

"URGH!" Twin Dreamer braced himself, thrown back by the force

"Take this!" Ash pushed the psychic attack ball into Goth's face. The ball burst open with a psychic shock, stunning the Super Fiend in his place, "RUN!" Ash grabbed Misty's hand and the two of them made a break for it.

"Grr…" the two Super Fiends growled and got up "So they want to run do they? THEN BRING IT ON!" Twin Dreamer flew into the air, with the power of his psychic energy

Goth raised his scythe "You can run Ketchum, but I can hide! Shadow Stalker!" He shouted as he leaped into the wall, becoming nearly invisible as he transformed into a shadow and pursuing them through the dark.

(Location- Rooftops)

Above the emptied city, Sky Render stood at the top of the tallest building, smiling as we watched what was going on down below. "Well Ash, seems like you're in quite a predicament. We Super Fiends usually travel in teams of two, and Twin Dreamer and Goth happen to be the strongest pair. Now let me see, gow can the little champion get out of this one?" He smiled. Sky Render then sighed. The reason those two were after him was because he told them that Ash was a threat that had to be eliminated. In reality, he was just testing Ash… "It may seem harsh, but I have to see what you can really do when cornered, and every odd is stacked against you. If you can't survive this battle, then are you aren't even worth my time… nor are you worthy of being a Chosen One…" He spoke seriously. "Believe me Ash Ketchum, to die here will be far gentler than dying at the hands of the Kaiser Cult…"

_Sky Render is right. The serious of the matter is high, the odds against our two remaining heroes, and the stakes are at their highest! What will happen to Ebi, Brock and Tracey if Ash and Misty lose? Is it possible to undo the Soul Harvest? And what possible reasons can the Super Fiends have to hunt Ash to such a degree, where they are willing sacrifice even their own lives? Find out next time on PUA!_

(TO BE CONTINUED)


	18. Impending Doom

Chapter 18- Impending Doom

_Out of all the fighters that walk this world, the Super Fiends are said to be the strongest group, and every one of them has a lifetime of battle experience. It is said that each member of the team had trained hard to acquire incredible strengths, even the ability to control the elements. Whenever the group isn't gathered, they travel in groups of two (the only exceptions being Aquamarine and Sky Render, both of which travel alone), and right now… I have the strongest of the two-man teams coming after me. These two are said to be unbeatable when fighting as a pair, their individual strengths are already incredible, but when together, they can bring each other to new heights. They proved that, being able to wipe out an entire city in a single swipe. Right now, we are alone and unarmed, and the rest of our pokémon are back at the centre. The fiends hold every single advantage, and we have to think fast, or else the two of us will be next. Beating them isn't an option right now… not until we are capable of fighting back… and we have to find a way to reverse what they did to our friends…_

_-Ash Ketchum_

(Location- Marble city streets)

"Waaa… this way!" Ash rushed through the dark alleyways

"Are you sure this'll get us back to the pokémon centre?" Misty asked, following close behind him

"No, but I'm SURE it'll get us away from those two freaks!" Ash replied

"So you're not sure we're going to the pokémon centre!"

"I just said that!"

"Then how are we supposed to save our friends?"

"I'm doing what Ebi told us to do!"

"Ebi wanted us to go to the centre, didn't he?"

"Enough about the centre already! Yes! Okay! We're going in that direction, but between us and there is seven blocks, and that isn't our lucky number! We've gotta hurry…!" Suddenly, Ash froze, he could feel his trainer instinct kick in… DANGER!

"MORTAL REAPER!" Goth shouted as his top half appeared out of a wall and swung his dark scythe at Ash

"WA!" Ash screamed, jumping back and narrowly evading it

"Heading to the pokémon centre, eh? I won't let you! MORTAL REAPER!" He slashed his scythe again at Misty, but it didn't hit her. It hit Togepi.

"Togepriii!" Togepi cried as it dissolved into thin air

"What… WHA…" Misty gasped… "N-no…! TOGEPIIIII!" Misty shrieked, "YOU…" she turned to Goth, tears gathered in her eyes, "I'LL KILL YOU!"

"GET BACK!!" Ash shouted, grabbed Misty and pulled her back just in time, missing the scythe. Before she could even get close, Goth would have sliced her in half, "Stay away from him! If we're hit by that attack, it's all over for us!"

"LET ME GO!" Misty shook Ash off and pulled up the sledgehammer "HAAA…!" she swung it down at him. However, the Super Fiend skilfully evaded the attack, leaping out of the shadows and materializing in full.

"You actually want to fight me?" Goth smirked, tilting his head and avoiding Misty's hammer just barely. He was toying with her!

"PI-KA-CHUUUU!" Pikachu attacked with the electricity

"HM!" Before the electricity hit, he immediately sunk back into the darkness as a shadow, and the electricity hit nothing but empty air! "It's useless. As long as there is darkness, I am invincible…" he suddenly reappeared… behind Misty, his scythe barely touching her neck…

"HA!" Ash immediately lunged forwards to punch him, and Goth immediately reverted back to a shadow. "Grr…!" Ash growled, but relieved as well. Though he had missed, he kept Goth from finishing Misty off… "Your defence is perfect… but as long as you're a shadow, you can't harm us." Ash said, as Goth materialized once more, "I've found the chink in your armour."

"Oh really?! Do enlighten me! MORTAL…"

**BAM!**

"AGH!" Goth stumbled back when Ash punched him square in the face. Taking that opportunity, Pikachu shot off the ground and smacked the dark Super Fiend with Skull Bash, and then Misty slammed the side of his head with her hammer!

"You can't attack and defend at the same time" said Ash, crossing his arms

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO TOGEPI?!" Misty shouted "TELL ME RIGHT NOW!" with that, she charged forwards, whirling her large hammer through the air…

"TWIN DREAM!" Twin Dreamer shot his attack from behind, hitting the ground between Misty and Goth, and causing her to fly back.

"And I seem to have found a rather large chink in YOUR armour, Ketchum" Said Goth, standing up, as if he hadn't been hit at all. "The girl can't control her emotions. She will be nothing but a burden. If you leave her behind, you'll have a much greater chance of survival" he smirked as Twin Dreamer landed next to him, "Unlike you, me and my team-mate know how to play together. We're even linked in the minds, if I can see you, TD will pick up and come right away"

"Shut up!" Twin Dreamer slapped Goth on the back of the head, "I told you to stop calling me by that name!"

"You're bringing that up right now, TD?" Goth looked at him

"Now you're just doing it to annoy me!" Twin Dreamer said angrily. He REALLY hated being called by his initials… no surprise, 'TeeDee' does sound pretty stupid…

While Goth and Twin Dreamer were bickering, Ash got up, grabbed Misty by the arm and ran right past them. "Idiots" Said Ash, reaching into his pockets as he ran. Even though he didn't have the QuickSilver, he still kept a few nitro balls in his pockets, just in case he needed them. He rolled it across the ground over to Goth's and Twin Dreamer's feet, and he grabbed Mist's arm and ran

The nitro ball touched Goth's foot, "Hmm?" he looked down "What's this?"

Twin Dreamer sweatdropped, "Hey, isn't that a nitro…"

**KABOOM!**

"AAAARGH!!" Both Goth and Twin Dreamer were sent flying in different directions. "Yes. It was" Goth groaned and got up…

Ash wanted to get to the pokémon centre immediately, but Misty was slowing him down. "Come on Misty! We have to hurry!"

"I'm not going anywhere" she answered and held out the sledgehammer, "I am staying right here!"

"But they'll come and get you!" Said Ash

"Let them come! That damn Goth! You saw what he did to Togepi! I want revenge!" Misty was in tears

Ash started to get annoyed, but he understood how she felt. After all, how would he react if the same thing had happened to Pikachu? He had to comfort her somehow "Listen Misty, there's got to be a better solution than this! Now I may not be the same voice of reason as Ebi, but I know that killing that dead-looking guy isn't the answer! And plus, even if you were to run right up to those two fiends and attacked them, Goth is far stronger! You won't stand a chance against him, and the same thing will happen to you as it did to our friends! It's not worth it if you sacrifice yourself without even accomplishing anything! We can't win like this! We have to get to the pokémon centre to get our pokémon! I promise you, I'll do what it takes, anything to get Togepi back for you!" He looked at her straight in the eye

Misty was quite shocked at what Ash said, but he was right "You're right" Misty wiped some tears out of her eyes and straightened up, "I'm sorry Ash, and you are right! It's not the time to be crying! Thank you…" she gave Ash a hug, then she let go and ran to the centre

"Whoa…" Ash's eyes were wide open. He nearly fainted from the sudden turn of emotion, but he shook it off and ran to catch up. Ash and Misty started sprinting. They reached the pokémon centre. Despite the power out, the centre had its own emergency power source, and the automatic doors slid open. "You go get the pokémon, I'll get the weapons!" he said, and Misty nodded.

Ash ran into the dark bedrooms, pulling out the shining sphere and using it to illuminate the area. After a bit of quick searching, he found both the fully repaired QuickSilver as well as Ebi's tools. Taking the tools and doing what he saw Ebi do once, he opened it up and placed shining sphere inside. "All right!" he smirked as he shut the weapon, then attaching it to his arm. "Locked and loaded! Now we can fight! You ready Pikachu?"

"Pika!" Pikachu's cheeks sparked

"All right!" they ran into the lobby, and Misty had all the pokéballs ready. "Thanks Misty!" he grabbed his pokéballs and placed them on his pokébelt, while Misty got her pokéballs ready

"Time to kick some Super Fiend butt!" She smirked, "Here they come!"

"TWIN DREAM!"

_**CRASH!**_

The doors were blown open with Twin Dreamer's attack, "Well, well… so this is where you were headed?"

_**SMASH!**_

Goth smashed through the skylight and jumped through, landing on the counter, "You think getting your pokémon will save you now?"

Ash smirked "Yep, and now we're more than a match for you, 'TeeDee'!"

"GR…" Twin Dreamer growled, a nerve became apparent on the side of his head, "DON'T CALL ME THAT! TWIN DREAM!" he shot the psychic beam

"HM!!" Ash quickly evaded the attack… and it continued to fly, towards Goth!

"AH!" Goth barely had enough time to move. The beam grazed the side of his face

"PI-KA-CHUUU!" Pikachu jumped into the air and shocked Twin Dreamer

"EVERYBODY! GOOO!" Ash released all his pokémon, "ATTACK!!!"

The pokémon launched their attacks and Ash even shot some nitro balls for extra explosion. The attack sent Twin Dreamer crashing through the entrance and slamming into the wall on the other side of the road. Ash, Misty and all the pokémon turned to Goth

"Hmm… this isn't a good place to fight." He growled, there was light in the building, and it was interfering with his abilities. Quickly he moved through the doors and back into the streets.

"I agree" said Ash as he, Misty and all the pokémon ran through the doorways, "Wouldn't want to damage to the pokémon centre either!"

"MORTAL REAPER!" Goth darted forwards with his attack

"ICE PILLAR!" Ash and Misty shouted at the same time. All the water pokémon fired the attack, and Politoed froze it with ice beam. The pillar slammed into Goth in the stomach, crushing him against the wall

"AH…" Goth gasped, his eyes opened wide and his mouth hung open. The pillar fell to the ground, and so did he, gasping desperately…

"Your attack may be dangerous, but it's useless if you can't touch us!" Said Misty, "We won't let you get close enough to use it! Now either you bring back Togepi and our friends, or we do that all over again!"

Goth groaned and got up. He was a warrior, and he would not be taken down by one attack. "And why should I be afraid of that?"

"ICE PILLAR!" Misty shouted

"HYAAA!" in the blink of an eye, Goth cut the pillar into pieces

"TWIN DREAM!" Twin Dreamer shot a mind burn version of the attack

"CAPTURE!" Ash spun around and hit the Twin Dream with an element-capture ball. The ball caught the attack and changed into a silvery colour, "Thanks for the gift! Here's one for you!" Ash aimed his QuickSilver arm and shot the nitro ball at Twin Dreamer. When he flew to the side to evade it, Pidgeot and Noctowl attacked!

"MORTAL REA…" Goth had barely begun his mortal reaper attack when Bulbasaur tackled him in the stomach, "AH…!" he gasped, feeling the impact in his already-injured stomach…

"BAY BAAAY!" Bayleef's vines shot forwards and pulled the scythe out of Goth's hands, and throwing it into Ash's

"Without your weapon, you're helpless" said Ash, clutching the scythe

"Maybe if we BREAK it, would that bring our friends back, hmm?" Misty smiled

"Go ahead…" Goth got back up. "That scythe is the only way to bring them back. Break it, and they'll be trapped forever!"

"All right!" Ash smirked, dropping it. "I had no intentions of breaking it, I just wanted to find out whether it's possible to get our friends back, and you just answered our question!" he and Misty smiled, and Goth scowled… they had tricked him!

"Now what we know we can get them back…!" She charged forwards swinging her sledgehammer through the air, with her pokémon behind her "All we need to do now is CONVINCE you to bring them back!"

"PSYCHIC STUN!" Twin Dreamer shot the stunner attack, Pidgeot and Noctowl dropped to the ground, unable to move. "TWIN DREAM!" He fired another beam at Misty and her pokémon

"AGH!" She fell to the ground

"MISTY!" Ash screamed, feeling his blood begin to boil. Even though Misty wasn't hurt all that bad, he was still enraged that Twin Dreamer attacked her

"Heh-Heh!" Goth laughed as he dashed forwards and grabbed his scythe

"TWIN DREAM!" Twin Dreamer shot another impact beam at Misty

**BANG!**

Ash growled. He had jumped in front of Misty and smacked the spiralling beam out of the air with his right arm.

"MORTAL REAPER!" Goth attacked with his glowing scythe, but Ash deflected it with his arm and slammed Goth with the other "Urgh!" Goth was thrown back by Ash's impressive display of strength, "Why you…" he growled. That boy… the moment one of his friends was attacked, he seemed to have gotten stronger… "Hm?" Goth blinked. Ash was ignoring them as he walked over to Misty and helped her up

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah"

"Hmm…" Ash glared at the fiends, "First they fiends attack our friends, then Togepi, now they attack you" Said Ash. Misty blinked as Ash faced the two fiends. Goth and Twin Dreamer. "Haven't you done enough damage all ready?!" at that statement, the two of them began laughing, "What's so funny?!"

"You! That's what" said Twin Dreamer, "Who do you think you are, acting like some sort of hero, when you have no idea what's really going on!"

"You're so ignorant, thinking we're just common villains, attacking people for no reason. You just don't see the 'big picture'!" said Goth. "Those who stand against Sky Render… stand for the destruction of this world!"

"Grr…" Ash had no idea what those two were talking about… nor did he remotely care. These people… they needed to be punished… and the QuickSilver on his right arm started to glow gold…

"Ah…?!" Both Goth and Twin Dreamer's eyes opened wide, catching a glimpse of the golden glow. "Is… is that…?!" suddenly, the golden glow faded, and they sighed in relief. "No way, we were imagining it… it couldn't possibly be…"

"For a second I actually thought we had something to worry about" said Goth

"I'd rethink that if I were you! ATTACK!" Ash shouted. Immediately the pokémon surrounded Twin Dreamer and Goth and fired their attacks

"HM!" The two Super Fiends skilfully moved, evading the attacks,

"TWIN DREAM!"

"MORTAL REAPER!"

Quickly, all the pokémon moved and evaded the attacks! "HYDROTHUNDER!"

"TWIN DREAM!" The two powerful attacks ricocheted off each other. "Heh! You're good, but I'm better! TWIN DREAM!" Twin Dreamer shot another Twin Dream, but Charizard smacked it out of the air with his wing, "Damn…! I guess a solid beam is ineffective when met by an equal or greater force…" he growled, "They may be stronger physically… but how will you do if your minds are weaker?"

"Um… wa?" Ash stared at him

"MIND BURN!" he fired a huge wave of psychic energy…

"WAAAAAAAA!" Ash and Misty, as well as all the pokémon fell to the ground, their hands held tightly on their heads, which felt like they were about to explode…

"GRRR… MUST… FIGHT IT!" Ash got up, but his head was hurting too much. He had never had any trouble with getting hit on the head because of his thick skull, but the mind burn was attacking it from the inside. "I-I CAN'T!" Ash fell to his knees

Misty was also in agony, there wasn't a pokémon who could handle this attack. Or maybe there was… "HMMF!" She slowly reached for the pokéball, struggling not to faint, "Agh… PSYDUCK! GOOOOO!"

The ball opened up, and out came Psyduck. "A Psyduck eh?" Twin Dreamer laughed, "Trying to use that headache thing against me? Let me remind you I have the most powerful mind in the world, and no pokémon can match! MIND BURN!" All of the energy he unleashed on everyone halted as he shot it at Psyduck.

"PSYYAAAIIIIE!" Psyduck screamed as the Twin Dream hit him…

Misty managed to grin "Now that Psyduck's got a headache, you just lost!"

"Psy…" Psyduck groaned and fainted

"eep." Misty sweatdropped

"You're not the first to try and use that trick against me." Said Twin Dreamer, "My mind is simply too powerful to be matched by mere pokémon"

"Let's end this… MORTAL… what?" Goth stopped in his tracks as Psyduck got up

"Psyduck?" Misty looked at the pokémon "That's strange…" She was right. Usually when Psyduck gets a splitting headache, his eyes would glow blue and he'd be radiating with some sort of energy, but not this time.

"I don't know what he's trying to pull, but I'm in a hurry! Let's finish this! Twin… AH!" Twin Dreamer stopped in his tracks as he stared in horror at Psyduck, "S… such… power…!" he gasped, he could sense a tremendous psychic force coming from the pokémon… even stronger than him!!! "No! It can't be…!"

"What's going on? It's just a Psyduck. You can handle it easily!" Said Goth

"No… this… this isn't a regular Psyduck we're dealing with! I think by using my powers to try and destroy his mind, I've actually helped him unlock his TRUE powers!" Twin Dreamer was trembling

"What?"

"That Psyduck… it's the legendary Amnesia Psyduck!" Twin Dreamer shouted, pointing at Psyduck, "This pokémon's slow and almost never knows its attacks, because it is always under the effects of Amnesia! And because of this, when its powers are activated, nothing can compete with it!"

_AMNESIA! A pokémon will forget all of its attacks, as well as everything and not move for one turn. It will then regain its memory and come back to fighting, with its attacks stronger than before! 'Beginner's luck' if you will…_

Twin Dreamer was right. As if a pokémon had used amnesia, Psyduck seemed to have snapped back to attention. Psyduck's eyes were glowing a fiery blue, and a frightful blue Aura surrounded his body, as well as its terrifying psychic power

"No… way…!" Goth stepped back nervously

"PSYYYYYYYYY!" Psyduck stretched his hands forwards. Psyduck's energy exploded in the direction of the two Super Fiends. Windows all over the city shattered, the ground trembled and buildings shook. This was the Amnesia Psyduck's true power. The attack was too strong. Twin Dreamer and Goth got hurt and collapsed… "Duck…" Psyduck sighed, closing his eyes.

"Psyduck… Psyduck!" Misty got up and picked up her pokémon, hugging it tightly, "I'm so proud of you! You are really special! Yeah! That's right! Imagine, you! You're the legendary Amnesia Psyduck! I never thought it was possible! And I'm the Amnesia Psyduck's trainer! That is like totally SOOOOOOO COOOOOL!" She was jumping around with Psyduck in her arms

"Whoa… calm down Misty!" said Ash, "You're starting to act like your sisters!" at those words, Misty immediately stopped jumping around and stuff

"Ugh… agh…" in the distance, Goth and Twin Dreamer groaned

"Ga… I can't believe it! I've been bested by another psychic!"

"I… can't move…" Goth struggled to get up, he held on to his scythe to support him

"We can't… we can't give up! We can't lose! Not like this!" Twin Dreamer tried to stand, but fell to the ground

"Looks like we win!" Ash and Misty cheered

"So this is how it is… we've lost…" Goth gave up and dropped to the ground

"Giving up so soon?" A voice called in the distance

"Huh? WAAAAK!!!" Ash yelled as something white, and VERY fast darted forwards, slamming him to the ground with incredible strength. Whatever it was, it was fast! "Ow…" Ash groaned and watched it run and jump high into the air to the top of a three-story building. It stood still enough for Ash and Misty to see clearly what, or who it was. They both froze at who they saw on top of the roof "WAAA! IT'S S… SKY RENDER!"

Sky Render laughed, "I noticed you two were losing" he called down to Goth and Twin Dreamer, "I'm just gonna even the odds up a bit!" He jumped down

**SMACK!**

"CHROAR!" Charizard's head was slammed to the ground as Sky Render stomped down on his head as he jumped from the building

"PIKACHUUUU!" Pikachu screamed, releasing a blast of lightning…

"HM!" Sky Render drew his sword and swung, breaking the lightning apart. His swing was so strong, the gust of air it created threw Pikachu back, even from his distance! "You want to fight me?" Sky Render asked, looking around and seeing the pokémon that surrounded him. Taking a stance, he clutched his katana… "HMM!!!"

"AH…!" Ash gasped at what he saw next. Before any of the pokémon could even move, Sky Render had darted through their numbers and sheathed his sword. Every single one of them stood still, but collapsed to the ground, and they weren't moving. "No… th… that's impossible…" Ash shook his head… he couldn't believe it…

"I used the flat side of the blade, they will survive" Sky Render spoke, looking back at the pokémon. The gap in strength between him and those pokémon was simply too great… they probably didn't even know what hit them. "HMM!" he kicked off the ground and jumped high into the air, landing on top of a three-story building. "Don't get me wrong, I'm not gonna fight this battle for you! I was just helping a little!" Sky Render looked at the fallen Goth and Twin Dreamer.

"A little… right…" Misty was as shocked as Ash at Sky Render's power. Truly… they were no match for him…

"You have done well to defeat my two subordinates, Ash… but that was only practice. Now the real test begins…" Once again, Sky Render drew his katana, the SkyFall… and held it over his head. "Here's something you may be familiar with…" as he spoke, a golden glow began to surround his weapon…

"AH…!" Ash gasped, his jaw dropped and his eyes opened wide in shock, "N… no… it can't be… that's impossible…!" he gasped, stepping back, shaking his head… "It… IT JUST CAN'T BE POSSIBLE!" he screamed. That light… it was the Power of One!!!

"You aren't the only Chosen One here, Ash Ketchum!" Sky Render spoke. As he did this, both Goth and Twin Dreamer got up, their bodies started to glow with the golden light. The golden glows surrounding their bodies changed colours. On Twin Dreamer, there was a silver glow surrounding his body. On Goth was a black glow.

"I… can't believe it! The power… THE POWER!"

"So this is the Power of One… thank you Sky Render!"

"HAAAAAAA!" Both Twin Dreamer and Goth howled as the glows flashed bright and their bodies were invisible in the coloured light for a second. Finally the glow disappeared, and they stood there, fully healed and energized, but they really weren't THEY any more.

Twin Dreamer stood there, dressed in a silver outfit along with a flowing cape. Hanging from his neck like a pendant was a crystal ball. On his belt was a deck of Tarot Cards. He looked down at his hands, and then at his body, and smiled unpleasantly. He jumped into the air and flew, much higher and faster than before. He started teleporting from here to there, and then fired a huge psychic beam into the air. He then teleported back to his original location and finally spoke up "All this energy, I've never felt this power before…" He laughed and jumped into the air, "My psychic power has been enhanced! You are now looking at the all-powerful… GRAND DREAMER!" He smiled evilly and looked at Psyduck, "HAA!" he unleashed the mind burning wave. Even with his legendary psychic strength, Psyduck wasn't strong enough. Psyduck screamed in agony before falling to the ground, defeated…

_NAME: Grand Dreamer_

_WEAPONS: Psychic Energy, Tarot Cards_

_ATTACKS: Grand Dream, Mind Breaker, Psychic Hold, Grand Healer, Fate Shuffle_

_CLASS: Master Psychic, Psychic Element_

_RANK: A_

Goth was also different. He now had a black cape, and over his black outfit, and wore bones over his arms and legs and rib cage around his torso like armour. He then looked at his supercharged scythe with a blade nearly twice the size of before. Hanging from his belt was a new weapon, the_ Blood Whip_, which was a black whip, but wet with blood. His eyes glowed red and he no longer had teeth. Instead he had fangs, and his nails were sharp talons, like a vampire. He looked up at Ash and Misty and gave them a chilling smile, making both Ash and Misty tremble…

**CRACK!**

"WA!" Both Ash and Misty exclaimed

Goth had punched into the ground, smashing through the concrete easily, "Superhuman strength… an immortal body… the powers of the vampire… I have gained it all. Tremble in fear… FOR I AM CHAOS REAPER!"

_NAME: Chaos Reaper_

_WEAPONS: Great Demon Scythe, Whip, Fangs & Claws_

_ATTACKS: Mortal Reaper, Blood Fang, Blood Slash, Blood Whip, Lurking Death_

_CLASS: Vampire Warrior, Dark Element_

_RANK: S_

Ash and Misty stepped back nervously. These Super Fiends… the power radiating form them… was terrifying! Both Ash and Misty gasped as the fiends turned their gazes to the two of them, smiling wickedly… "RETURN!" Ash and Misty called the unconscious pokémon into their pokéballs. After calling them back, the two turned around and ran as fast as they could.

Grand Dreamer turned to face Sky Render "By the way, how long will the transformations last?"

"As long as it will take, until the fight is over, when either Ash or you are beaten. When it goes out, it'll only come back if I morph you" Sky Render crossed his arms, "But don't think that because of this power you're invincible!"

"I seriously doubt that…" Chaos Reaper smirked, "Let's go!"

(Meanwhile)

"Keep running!" Ash and Misty ran as fast as they could through a dark alleyway. "Bad enough there's that power out and the soul harvest, now we've gotta fight super psychics and vampires?! What's up with that? I only wanted to become a pokémon trainer for pokémon battles…! AH!" he and Misty suddenly froze, when they found themselves faced-to-face with Sky Render! "Grr…!" Ash growled, throwing his fear aside… "HAAA!!!!"

**WHAM!**

"Don't even try it" Said Sky Render, as Ash flew to the side. Before Ash could even hit him, he had swung the wooden sword.

"WHY YOU…! TAKE THIS!" Misty swung the sledgehammer down on him… "Ah!" she gasped in surprise, as the Super Fiend raised the wooden sword over his head and blocked, without even looking back. Despite the strength of the swing, Sky's arms didn't even budge… "AHHH!" she screamed when Sky Render pushed his arms upward, causing her to fall back.

"I'm not here to fight you, I just want to talk" Sky Render spoke seriously, facing the two of them. "I'm a sportsman, and I just thought I'd give you a fighting chance…"

"Yeah right! Your definition of 'a little help' was completely decimating all my pokémon! Why should we trust you?" Ash growled

"Because you will die if you don't" Sky Render crossed his arms, "The two of us… we are both Chosen Ones… we both wield the Power of One… but the difference between us is such that you have no idea how to even wield this power." He spoke, "The Power of One is an incredible force, and not only grants a Chosen One with godlike strength, but you can also focus it through almost anything, be it a weapon, a pokémon, or even people… like I did back there. But there's more…" Sky took a deep breath, "When bathed in the light of this power, normal people grow tremendously in strength, so much their bodies can't handle it… and the only way for them to survive is to change into a form that can… to _evolve_ if you will. The Chosen Ones themselves however… we do not transform, we remain as we are. Though it may seem like a raw deal, it's a good thing, because as those two transformed into stronger classes and all their strengths have been multiplied, and so have their weaknesses"

"What kind of weaknesses?" Ash asked suspiciously

"Whose side are you on?" Asked Misty, "First you attack us and make our opponents even worse, then you come here and start giving advice on how to beat them?"

"I have my reasons" Sky Render answered simply, "To face these two as you are, it is simply suicide. Your only hope is to draw out the power of one Ash… but you don't even know how." his eyes moved to face him, "That is the reason I had these two attack you… a life threatening situation may force you to release your power"

"WHAT?!" Ash screamed out in fury at what he said… everything that's happened… his friends being wiped off the face of the earth, the two Fiends attacking him with killing intent… all just for some twisted experiment?! "RHAAAA!" Ash lunged at him… "AH!" he exclaimed as Sky Render's leg shot up, kicking him in the chest and slamming him into the wall, "Ungh…!" Ash groaned. That kick was so strong…! "AH…" Ash gasped, as he suddenly felt the cold blade of a sword press against his neck.

"ASH!" Misty screamed

"The two of us may be Chosen Ones… but compared to me, you're just a baby who can't even walk. You are no closer to defeating me than you are stopping the sun from rising." Sky Render spoke in a cold tone. His glare was terrifying… even when he lowered his sword, Ash couldn't move… "Can't you see the difference between us?!" he spoke louder… as a golden glow surrounded him…

"…!!!" Ash's eyes opened wide, and Misty began to tremble, when Sky Render stood there, his power fully activated. He could feel it… the pressure simply from standing around him… it was so intense, he couldn't even breathe…! It was nothing like when Ash wielded it…! There wasn't any comparison between their levels!

"Hm…" Sky Render closed his eyes, and the power faded away. Sheathing his sword, he turned around and began walking away. "Don't stand against me again, or else I will kill you." he spoke harshly. "If you can draw out the power however, you may stand a chance against those two." And with that, he left

"He's gone" Said Misty

"Hm…" Ash looked down at his arm. "The Power of One… I really have no idea how to activate it. Last time it came up, it just happened without me even realizing it…" he growled… he wasn't sure if he could rely on it to win. "He also mentioned something else, about those two having weaknesses… I wonder, what could they be?"

In the background, they heard some crashing and hysterical laugher, "Well whatever they are, you'd better find out fast!" She and Ash began to run, in the opposite direction of the laughter

_Things keep getting worse. How can Ash and Misty hope to stand up to such fearsome opponents? Can they figure out how to defeat the two Fiends? And what exactly is Sky Render's purpose? Find out next time on PUA!_

(TO BE CONTINUED)


	19. Distant Voices

Chapter 19-Distant Voices

_Our group, anyone who joined us all had a reason. Brock wanted to become a great breeder, Tracey wanted to meet Prof. Oak, but Ebi… as good a friend he is, we hardly know anything about him. Other than always making powerful new weapons and gadgets, he always has incredible knowledge of every place we've ever been to or headed, as well as just about any enemy we've met. Ebi is a genius, and combining with his years of experience and expertise, he is a crucial member. When I think about it… it all started that night which felt like so long ago, when I saved him. Things kept escalating from there, leading up to me fighting the Super Fiends. When I think about it… if I never met him, would things have turned out this way? Would I have fought Doppelganger or gotten involved with the Super Fiends? Would Aquamarine still have come after me? Would I have even acquired the Power of One? As much as I want to think about these things, now's not the time… I'm in the middle of a battle… one that I'm not sure I can win. But no matter what, I can't give up… I have to try… _

_-Ash Ketchum_

(Location- Grim Void)

Grim Void… this bleak place stretched for an eternity. No ground, no sky, no gravity. Time flows much faster here than it does in the real world, making it longer for help to come. People will float aimlessly, losing their mind as they sink deeper and deeper into insanity. The only way to get here is to be banished by Mortal Reaper or Soul Harvest, both powers held by the Super Fiend Goth. After that, just about nothing else can connect our world to that dimension

"Just a bit more…" Ebi said to himself, but it was so difficult to concentrate. Over his glasses he was wearing some kind of magnifying scope. With the time speed here, almost two days have passed in that time Ash and Misty were fighting Goth and Twin Dreamer. The appearance of the surroundings hadn't changed one bit, and every direction remained the same blank white colour, with the exception of the other soul harvest victims floating around.

"(Yawn)" Brock just woke up, "Even after being banished into eternal limbo by Super Fiends, you still have to make all these inventions?" Brock stretched, feeling a bit tired and particularly sore. Being thrown into this place was a very tiring. Though the Super Fiends used the attack, it felt like the energy to get here came at the victim's expense. Thankfully, there was no need for food or water in this place.

"This is the only thing I can do here that's holding me back from insanity" Ebi didn't bother to look up at Brock, "I've been REAL busy, and I've been working on this ever since before I met Ash" it was impossible to tell what it was really, seeing how it was in a hundred pieces with all those tiny circuits and wires, "If this works, this may just save us…" Ebi yawned. It was getting more and more difficult to stay awake. He was already tired when they reached Marble city. The energy used up when sent here, along with the many hours spent endlessly working on this thing, he was exhausted.

"Ebi, you so much as rested since we got here over two days ago! I can understand the dedication if it were important, but how can we know it's importance if we don't know what it is?" Brock asked, as Togepi chirped in his arms

"There'll be plenty of time for rest later… what's important is I get this done immediately." Ebi's eyes started to droop, but he shook his head to wake up. His head was hurting but he refused to stop. Brock and Tracey tried to question him more, but Ebi simply ignored them. Eventually they drifted off to find someone else who'll make better conversation, Togepi followed. "Ash, Misty… try to hang on a bit longer…" Ebi spoke in a quiet voice, struggling to stay awake

(Location- Marble City)

"BLOOD FANG!" Chaos Reaper dove down from the building. Ash jumped out of the way, missing him. Before touching the ground, the vampire flipped so he landed gracefully on his feet, "Heh…"

"GRRR…" Ash growled, "Stand back Misty, the freak's a vampire now, and if all them old movies are correct, these guys always aim for the females first!" He pushed her back.

"Trying to protect your sweetheart?" Chaos Reaper smiled unpleasantly

"Oh shut up! TAKE THIS! SILVER BULLET!" Ash shot forwards, being pulled by his QuickSilver arm. The hard metal board, combined with the speed and the weight of his body, Ash slammed into Chaos Reaper hard.

"UGH!" Chaos Reaper felt the blow from the hit and was thrown off his feet and slammed into a wall. After a few seconds of shock wore off, he got back up, with no visible damage at all. "It didn't hurt! I didn't feel anything!" He laughed and pulled out the Blood Whip, "This body is immortal! Nothing you do will work against me!" He laughed, "BLOOD WHIP!" he swung the black bloody whip

"WA!" Ash moved his head to the side as the whip barely missed his face. The whip hit the wall, leaving a visible crack. "ow" he held his hand where it had grazed him

"If you think you stand a chance against me, think again! LURKING DEATH!" His body faded away as he became nearly invisible. He was like a ghost, transparent and everything, and in the darkness he was much harder to see.

"Ah…" Ash was sweating as he looked left and right… this technique made it impossible to follow him with his eyes… where did he go?!

"HISSSSSS!" Chaos Reaper hissed loudly, surprising Ash as he leapt from behind and grabbed his arms, keeping him form moving. Ash tried to struggle, but Chaos Reaper was far stronger. Chaos Reaper bared his fangs, "time for me to feast! BLOOD FA-"

"OH NO YOU DON'T!" Misty ran forwards and slammed him on the back of the head with the sledgehammer.

"AGH!" even though he was invulnerable, Chaos Reaper definitely felt this. His grip loosened up as the shock from the hammer stunned him

"GRR!" Ash broke out of the hold. Quickly he pulled out a nitro ball. Chaos Reaper involuntarily gasped at Ash's quick actions, and Ash thrust his hand forwards, forcing the nitro ball into Chaos Reaper's mouth. Before Chaos reaper could react, Ash closed his eyes and gave him a powerful uppercut, slamming his jaws shut…

**KABOOOM!**

"WAA!" Ash and Misty jumped back from the explosion

"AAARGH!" Chaos Reaper screamed. Even with his new strength, this was something that he could never have survived had he not been transformed to this body. His head was trembling and smoke was coming out from his mouth…

"HYA!" Before anything else happened, Misty swung the heavy sledgehammer upwards and slammed HARD between Chaos Reaper's legs

"ACK!" Chaos Reaper exclaimed and dropped to the ground, writhing in pain. In the meantime Ash and Misty ran as fast as they could.

"Good thinking Misty!" Ash high-fived her as they ran, "It doesn't matter how invincible you are, if you're a guy, that HURTS!"

"Thanks! I knew I'm not strong enough to knock him out, so I went with the quickest solution that came to me!" She smirked

"Yeesh… remind me never to get you mad again" Ash said as they continued to run

(Location- Grim Void)

"(Sigh) almost finished…" Ebi said to himself, his head constantly dropping. In that time Ash and Misty ran into Chaos Reaper which took about two or three minutes, nearly an hour had passed over here, "Only a few more pieces…" he reached for the necessary parts, but one of them was missing… "Agh, no! I can't have lost it now!"

"Here" a female's voice said as she handed Ebi the last piece of the device, "You dropped this"

"Oh, thanks…" Ebi accepted it as he turned around, and was shocked at who he saw

"Surprised? I can tell from that look you weren't expecting to see me!" She smiled. This attractive young girl looked almost identical to Ebi, with the black hair and eyes, but she didn't have glasses and her hair was long

"AMAEBI!" Ebi exclaimed as they hugged, "Of all the people…! How did you…! When…?!"

Amaebi smiled. "I can tell you were never expecting to see me!" She said, and looked at the gadget into her brother's hand "You've been working hard, and I think it's time you finished it!"

"Yes!" Ebi turned around and started to finish the device he was making

"Hey Ebi! Me and Brock heard you yell out and-WAAAGH!" Tracey exclaimed as Brock pushed him out of the way, sending Tracey spinning through the void

"HellomynameisBrockandIthinkyourethemostbeautifulgirlIhaveeverseenwhatisyourname?" Brock said very quickly

"Um…" Amaebi sweatdropped

**POW!**

"WAK!!!" Brock was sent flying as Ebi punched him

"Keep your hands away from my sister you lecherous pervert!" Ebi shouted, "Just ignore the eyeless freak, sis"

"Gah… sister?!" Brock exclaimed as he rubbed his head as he slowly descended, "No way could someone that nerdy, be in any way related to someone so pretty! And what was that remark?! I'll show you eyeless freak… AH!" he gasped when Tracey punched him, sending him flying

"That's for knocking me out of the way!" Tracey shouted

"Argh… Why am I the one getting all the bashing in this stupid fic!?" Brock shouted

"Oh shut up you cry-baby, Aquamarine's got it worse than you." Ebi turned around, "By the way… if you're here, then what about the others? Are they here?"

"No, sorry. Everyone's still separated, and until recently I was travelling with Tobiko… only we sort of got split up along the way, and I'm looking for her. Too bad, you really wanted to see her again, didn't you?" she Amaebi winked

"No-no-no-no! That's not what I meant!" Ebi said very quickly

"Sure-sure… but don't worry, I'm sure they're safe. They're all capable adventurers remember? For now, you should get to work and finish your invention!" she said, and Ebi started getting busy finishing the device.

"Hey," Said Tracey "I'm not sure I should be asking, but who's Tobiko?"

"(Girlfriend… well, she has potential anyways. Ebi's totally in love with her… and I'm pretty sure they'd make a great couple… if he could work up the nerve to actually TALK to her without fainting)" Amaebi whispered back, "(I know it's tempting to make fun of him, but I think we should let him finish)"

"YES! It's done!" said Ebi, holding it up. It looked like some sort of wristwatch, and the clock part was silver and shaped like a dome, "This is the most advanced piece of technology on earth. A pokédex is nothing compared to this thing! With a scanner able to tell us the HP, Stats and name of any opponent, human or pokémon, as well as a thousand times more memory than any government computer system, and can hack in and out of those things as well. It holds all my tools and in one, this is my ultimate masterpiece! THE EBIDEX!!!!!" He shouted, "Along with all the features, the transceiver phone's range and power has been multiplied by a thousand, as well as dimensional, and it's sure to help us outta this dump of a dimension!"

(Location- Marble City)

"Could you see him coming?" Ash whispered, they were hiding in one of the buildings

"I don't know. It's so dark…" Said Misty, (BEEPBEEPBEEP) they heard a sound, "What was that?" she wondered

"Oh yeah! I haven't used this thing in so long I nearly completely forgot about it!" Ash pulled out the transceiver phone, "hello?"

"(CRRRR) ASH! This is EBI! Can you hear me?" he said through the speaker

"Yes!" Ash and Misty were excited that they could talk to him, "We can hear you, loud and… well loud anyways!"

"Hey, let's see YOU try and get a good reception when you're speaking across worlds!" Ebi replied indignantly, while his friends all cheered. With the EbiDex, they could finally communicate with the outside world! That wasn't all, but now that there was a link between them, time between the two dimensions was synchronized!

"Hmm… that sounds like a pretty complicated situation! And who'd have ever though Sky Render could do that?" said Brock after hearing about it

"You think you're surprised, how do you think I feel? I mean, I'M the chosen one, and I'm supposed to be the only one who can use the power of one!"

"(CRR…) Cross that thought! You're **A **chosen one, not THE chosen one! I guess I should've told you earlier that Sky Render's a Chosen One who can use it too. What's more, he's infinitely stronger than you! Too bad, though! This whole Power of One thing seemed like the only way you can match him!" Said Ebi

"WHAT?!" Ash angrily yelled into the transceiver phone, "You mean to tell me you already knew that they could do that?!"

"(CRR…) um, yeah. Sorry, I guess that was a detail I forgot to mention… (CRRR)"

"Any MORE important details you neglected to mention?" Ash asked angrily

"(CRRR) Actually… those nitro balls you're carrying in your pockets? Do me a favour and put them in the QuickSilver, because I don't need any lawsuits. The way you've been handling them, it's a miracle they hadn't exploded and blown your legs off!"

"WA!" Ash quickly pulled all of the nitro balls he was carrying in his pockets and dumped them into the QuickSilver's storage compartment

"Can we PLEASE return to current situation?" Asked Misty

"(CRRRRR) Yeah, well… hmmm… weaknesses… (CRRR)"Ebi stopped to think for a moment, "Well Twin Dreamer is a psychic element fighter, and his power has gotten far stronger when turning into Grand Dreamer! I don't know any weakness, because I never stood around to watch his fights, but Grand Dream is far stronger than any Twin Dream attack, and his Tarot Cards are also a deadly weapon! As for weaknesses, I have no idea. However, the key to winning here may be to exploit his overconfidence from his newfound power… because while he's gained incredible power, he himself hasn't gotten any stronger! (CRRR…)" said Ebi

"What is that supposed to mean!" both Ash and Misty spoke

"It'll take too long to explain, you'll see for yourself when you fight him! (CRR)" Ebi continued "As for Goth… there is no question that he is the more dangerous of the two, and now that he's transformed into Chaos Reaper, there is no comparison between now and what he was before. He is without a doubt, the fiercest enemy you've faced! If you encounter him, RUN, because as you are now, there is no way for you to defeat him! To fight him will only mean death!" Ebi stressed

"Then how are we supposed to win against an enemy like that!?" Misty shouted

"There's the problem. You can't." Replied Ebi, "However, there may be an alternate solution. Marble City is a city that relies heavily on technology, so of course they'll have to have a back up power source! Even if you can't beat Chaos Reaper, if you relight the city, you'll take away his advantage! (CRR) Plus he's a vampire now, and light might hurt him! Also, try using any items you know of that kill vampires! You know, stuff like garlic, stakes in the heart, crosses and such… but your first course of action should be to light up the city!"

"So where is this power source?" Asked Misty

"Well… they say there's an underground plant beneath the electric company…"

"This city is huge! Be more specific! Where's the electric company?"

"Well… um… (Crr)"

"So… in short, you don't know" Said Misty

"(CRRR…)" Ebi didn't answer, "… … … … …SHUT UP!"

"I think you insulted him" Said Ash, "After all, knowledge is the only thing a geek like him's got to be proud of! After all, he's no athlete, he's got toothpick arms and legs, and he's got no strength, skills or any talent with sports to be proud of, unless you count weightlifting, what with those enormous glasses he's got. And don't get me started with looks! If the nerdy glasses aren't enough, get a load of that haircut!"

"I HEARD THAT!" Ebi shouted "(CRR…) So that's what you really think of me, eh? Well listen up here Ash Ketchum…"

"THERE YOU ARE!" the doors burst open, and there stood the super fiend. Wearing his silver outfit and a flowing silver cape, Grand Dreamer stood there, "So this is where you were hiding, in the electric company building?"

"We're in the electric company?" Misty blinked. Talk about convenient! "Uh, not now Teedee, can't talk! We're calling long distance here!"

"Oh sorry, didn't mean to interrupt… hey! Don't make fun of me!" He exclaimed, "And stop calling me TeeDee already!"

"Sorry! She didn't mean anything by that! She meant to call you GeeDee!" Said Ash

"GRRRR!" Grand Dreamer growled, "THAT'S EVEN WORSE! GRAND DREAM!!!"

**WHOOSH!**

"WAAAA!" Ash and Misty dove out of the day of the GIGANTIC beam that Grand Dreamer shot. It went tearing through the wall and smashing through one building after another, anything that was in its way. "Whoa…" Ash and Misty sweatdropped

"That'll teach you to call me names!" He pulled out his tarot cards and started shuffling the deck, "FATE SHUFFLE!" the cards started to glow as he finished shuffling. He then pulled one out and looked at it, "Heh! Here's a good one!" one the card was a picture of the night sky with the stars and half-moon. Under the picture were written the words '_Clair du Lune_'

"Clear the what?" Ash read it confused

"No Ash, it's French! It means moonlight!" Said Misty. As she spoke, even though their eyes have adjusted to the dark, everything went completely black…

**CCRRAAAASSHHH!!!!!!**

"AAAAAAAAAHHHH!" They both screamed when HUGE pillar of light smashed through the roof. Ash, Misty and Pikachu jumped out of the way and missed it, but barely. That attack… was so powerful! It had smashed right through the building and right into the ground!

"This is my power!" Said Grand Dreamer "The effect of this card is like Solarbeam, all the moonlight shining across the lands was absorbed for one second, and all the energy from the dim light is concentrated into one beam and SMASHES down on the target! And because it came randomly from the draw of a card, it doesn't cost ME any energy!!" he held up the deck proudly

"THUNDERBOLT!" Ash shouted and Pikachu attacked Grand Dreamer with lightning

"GRAND DREAM!" Grand Dreamer countered it with a gigantic beam of energy. The psychic power broke the chain of lightning. "PSYCHIC HOLD!" he shouted. Suddenly, Ash felt his body lock, he couldn't move, held by an invisible force! "Now… Grand-!"

"PIKAAAA!!!" Pikachu quickly attacked from the side, striking him with thunder wave.

"URGH!" Grand Dreamer gasped, feeling the effects of the paralysis, losing all feeling in his body as well as his ability to levitate. He fell from the air… though the numbness disappeared right before he hit the ground. "OW!" he shouted. Slowly he got up, "GRRR… GRAND DREAM… URK!" he felt the effects of paralysis again and wasn't able to move or attack. That paralysis stopped him dead in his tracks!

"Yeah, well thanks GeeDee! We'd like to stay and chat, but you know… anyways thanks for blasting us a nice pathway!" Said Ash as he jumped onto the QuickSilver and Misty and Pikachu hopped on as they quickly descended into the hole, the three of them pulled down an eyelid and stuck out their tongues

"D-DAMN!" Grand Dreamer cursed

(Location- Marble City underground complex)

Some parts of the Marble dessert were extremely rocky under ground, and Marble City was built over one of them. There were enormous rocky caves and underground rivers, and there was a hydro-electric plant being used for those rivers. It was mostly a bunch of rooms stationed around the caves over the large rivers, and full of metal bridges with safety rails all over the place. There were some dim lights hanging from the ceiling, which lit up the place. Even with the power out, these lights were to remain on always. Ash and Misty were running on one of these metal bridges

"So you got away from Grand Dreamer huh? (CRRR) Quickly, get your pokédex out!" Said Ebi as Ash and Misty ran

"Okay" Ash pulled it out

"(CRRR…) now touch it to the transceiver I'll do the rest!" said Ebi. Ash held the pokédex close, and cables appeared from the transceiver device, connecting to the pokédex, "Good, now touch your pokédex to the ground!"

"Right!" Said Ash as he touched the ground with it

"All right! Ebidex Scan! (CRRR…)" Ebi called out. From his end of the line, the EbiDex was scanning the entire area by hacking into the pokédex and using its scanner. A map appeared on the EbiDex revealing all the halls, pathways and rooms, including our hero's location "All right! I'll guide you now!"

After a few minutes of following his directions, they found the room with the main switch and flipped it. Outside where the gigantic underground river was running, the electric turbines started to turn, and power was returning to the city. Ash and Misty ran out of that room and continued over the metal bridges and reached some stairs connecting this one to a higher one.

"(Crrr) Good! The power's back on! Now you can go back to surface and enjoy a battle under fully lit conditions! Chaos Reaper's still powerful, but he's lost his advantages brought by the darkness! (CRR)" Ebi's voice spoke, "The EbiDex scanner's picked up something, and it's close! I can't see what it is though! There's three of them! (CRRR…)"

"Three?" Ash said aloud

"The only three left in the city are Grand Dreamer, Chaos Reaper, and Sky Render!" Said Misty

"You got that right!" A voice spoke up. Ash and Misty stopped when they saw someone standing on top of a metal beam, dressed in a silver outfit and pure white hair… there he stood… Twin Dreamer? "Heh…" he laughed as he looked down at them. "I have to hand it to you twerps, there are few who could last this long against us. But maybe if you hand over Pikachu, I'll let you go…"

"Huh?" Ash and Misty blinked. When did Grand Dreamer revert back to his original form? And since when were the fiends interested in taking Pikachu?

"You won't give him up? I'm warning you, I can be really scary! As a matter of fact I-WHOA!" he exclaimed as he lost his balance, "No-no-no-no!" he slipped "EAAHH!" he fell from the beam and landed with a painfully loud **-Thud-** 'TeeDee' groaned as he looked up, hair turned out to be a wig, which fell off, revealing who it really was

"JAMES?!" Ash and Misty exclaimed

"ow." James groaned

"James you moron! You ruined the trap!" Jessie called from one of the higher metal bridges

"How're we supposed ta capture Pikachu now?" Meowth shouted

"You idiots!" Misty kicked James, "What do you think you're doing here?!"

"Um, stealing Pikachu?" Said Jessie

"Yeah, yeah, I can see that. But more importantly, why didn't YOU guys get banished to that alternate dimension like everyone else?" Ash crossed his arms

"Oh, so dat's what happened?" Asked Meowth

"We don't know anything. That ESP jerk came and attacked us! Well, except for James who KO'ed himself in that pathetic attempt at an escape" Said Jessie

"But that doesn't explain how come you're still here"

"I can answer that!" Said Ebi, in the tone he usually speaks in whenever he pops up out of nowhere and explains everything, "(CRRR) The Soul Harvest may have the same effects as Mortal Reaper, but not as effective, because its range is simply being increased through the use of telekinesis, you know… having to do with the mind? They were unconscious and because their minds didn't react, neither would their souls or bodies. They purposely missed Ash. As for Misty… I have NO idea why she didn't get hit (CRRR)"

"Toge! Priiii!" Togepi chirped Hearing Togepi brightened Misty up immediately. She felt relieved that Togepi was all right. That wasn't all, but she figured out why she didn't get banished either. It was because of Togepi…

"Well… seeing how we're fighting a greater evil, one that'll surely attack you guys as well (no matter how much you deserve it) but they're REALLY strong and we could use all the help we can get. So can we call a truce?" Ash asked

"It's a deal!" James reached up and shook Ash's hand

Now things were looking up, even though their opponents were powerful, at least Ash and Misty weren't by themselves right now. As they made their way up to the surface, Marble City seemed different. Now that there were street lights, this city had lost its aura of terror, it felt almost welcoming…

**RRRIIIIP! CRACK!**

Chaos Reaper tore through a metal lamppost with his bare hands, "Damn lights!" he didn't notice the group. He was making too much noise breaking these lights.

"Listen to this strategy! See, while Mr. Happy is busy battling the fearsome lampposts…" Ash began to explain it all. "You see that bank over there? Basically, we're not gonna try and beat him. I'll go open the vault while you guys fight him! We'll force him in and lock him, and then weld it shut with a fire pokémon!" said Ash, "I'll go in there and line the floor of the vault with Nitro Balls first, so when we lock him in, he won't try to get rough and break out unless he wants another nitro ball explosion!" Ash said as he quickly and quietly sneaked into the bank.

Misty went to hide in the alleyways, and Team Rocket were about to play their part.

"Hey you! The dead-looking guy!" Jessie called out as the three stepped forwards.

Chaos Reaper stopped breaking lampposts and looked at them, "What do you want?"

"Prepare for trouble!"

"Make it double!!"

"To protect the world from devastation!"

"To unite all people within our nation!"

"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"

"To extend our reach to the stars above!"

"Jessie!"

"James!"

"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now or prepare to fight!"

"Meowth! That's right!"

Chaos Reaper stared at them, "Okay, now really, what do you want?" Jessie, James and Meowth fell over in stupidity

"We just said it! Didn't you get anything out of what we said?!"

"No." He answered plainly

"GRRR! That's it! You're dead!" They growled.

"Arbok! Wobuffet! Attack!" Jessie sent them out

"Wheezing! Victreebell! Go!" James sent them out

"SCREEEECH!" Victreebell immediately dove and swallowed James whole

"MMFTMF! LET GO!" James crawled out of Victreebell's mouth.

"Heh!" Meowth extended his claws, "Prepare yourself Super Fiend!"

(Meanwhile)

"Now put this gently here…" Ash placed the last nitro ball on the ground, "There!" there were nitro balls lying all over the floor inside the bank vault. "This is the right way Ebi?"

"Let me check!" Ebi looked through the minimap, and saw how the floor was lined up with nitro balls, "Almost perfect! But if you don't want it to explode the second he comes in, I suggest you remove that one over there, those three over here and…" Ebi told Ash which ones to remove, "Perfect! When he's thrown in here, he'll land in this spot without the nitro balls, they'll simply littler his path between him and the door. This way, there won't be an explosion unless he tries anything!"

"That's good news! The first we've had in a while! Now all we have to do is get the walkin' dead in here and we're done with him! Just one question, what if he uses Lurking Death to get out, or the nitro balls blow this place open?"

"Don't worry! This room is solid with special alloys, it'll take about a hundred more to break it open! And he can't slip out either, because the walls and door are magnetically sealed. The strongest lasers will just bounce right off, and ghosts can't get in or out! Gotta hand it to the people of marble city! Not many places ghost-proof their bank vaults! Greed is good, eh?"

"Maybe, but one thing bugs me. How is Team Rocket doing against him?"

"MORTAL REAPER!" he heard someone shout

"CHARRBOOOK!"

"WOBBBAAA!"

"WHEEZIIIING!"

"SCHREEEEEEEECH!"

Ash sweatdropped, "Well that answers my question" He walked to the entrance and gasped at what he saw

"MEAAAOWR!" Meowth dove forwards and slashed at Chaos Reamer's face, but the fiend moved and missed, "GRRR! ROWR!" Meowth continued to lash with his claws and fangs. All the swipes, if they even hit, had no effect whatsoever. Meowth landed on all four on the ground. "Hey, you're not bad, for a human!"

"And you're pretty good, for a freak!"

"Watch it bub!" Meowth hissed, "I'll show you! MEEEOOWTH!!!" Meowth leapt forwards with his claws and teeth bared

"Fighting tooth and nail is your specialty, but it's useless if I'm that much better! BLOOD SLASH!" Before Meowth reached him, Chaos Reaper swiped at his face with his long and very sharp nails

"AGH!" Meowth fell to the ground, "GRRR…!"

"MORTAL REAPER!" Chaos Reaper attacked with his scythe

"ROWR!!" Mewoth leapt over it and dove down at Chaos Reaper's face "ROWR!" Before he could tear at him with his claws, Chaos Reaper smacked him out of the air and attacked with the scythe again, "RRR…!" Meowth hissed as he stood on all four, his fur standing up, "MEEEOOOWR!!!!" Meowth darted forwards and attacked.

Meowth was getting more savage by the second. He was acting like a real wild cat. He hadn't uttered a word. He hissed, he growled, this fight was too serious for any silly catch phrases. Meowth was fighting like he had never fought before. Everyone was quiet as they watched the two combatants, the agile cat and the ghostly reaper battle each other. Both of them were moving like lightning.

"You're good, almost as fast as me, but not nearly as strong! Your stamina is your most critical weakness, you're tiring quickly! HA!" Meowth wasn't fast enough and Chaos Reaper slammed him over the head, smacking him hard onto the pavement. Meowth was about to get up, but Chaos Reaper stepped on him with one foot, and keeping him from moving "The only thing that's letting you keep up with me is your speed. You're exhausted, and without your agility, you're nothing more than a helpless kitten! MORTAL REAPER!"

"MEEEEOOOOWWTH!" Meowth gave one final screech as the scythe passed through him as he faded out of existence

"MEOWTH! NO!" James shouted

"I can't believe it!" Jessie exclaimed, "Ah!" she gasped, when Chaos Reaper turned and faced them.

"Uh… UHH… S-STAY BACK!" James held up a cross

Chaos Reaper looked at it "um, is that supposed to scare me?"

"Heh, surely you know these things do to vampires!" James smirked, but his smirk faded as Chaos Reaper approached

"And how will this affect me?" Chaos Reaper was right in front of James

"Gah…" James was shaking, but straightened up, "Ugh! This is a cross! How thick can you get?! Doesn't this have ANY MEANING AT ALL to you?!" he shouted

"Nah, not really, no" He said quite casually "Why should a cross have meaning to me?" he flicked it out of James's hand with his finger, "I'm not Christian"

"Well can't argue with that logic… um, I mean… eep." James sweatdropped

"MORTAL REAPER!" Chaos Reaper attacked

"EEEEHEEOOOHOHO!!!" James also faded as the attack hit him

"NO! WHY YOU!" Jessie charged forwards

"Hm?" Chaos Reaper turned around

"TAKE THIS!" She held up a wooden stake and placed it where his heart was… "HAAA!!" she struck it with the hammer.

Chaos Reaper didn't flinch. The stake didn't even penetrate his skin. "That won't work" He plucked the stake and mallet out of her hands and crushed them, "My power goes far beyond anything you may have heard in the myths." His hand forward up and grabbed her by the neck, lifting her into the air, in his other hand he lifted his scythe "Nothing can stop me, not even the sun itself! MORTAL REAPER!" He tossed Jessie into the air and swung the scythe, sending her to the Void. He turned to Ash "you're next"

Ash took a fighting stance "Those guys put up an incredible fight, possibly the best one they ever had. Even if they did lost, they proven their strength and courage."

"Yeah… they've proven how weak they are! RAAAAAAR!" Chaos Reaper charged forwards and slashed at Ash with the scythe, but Ash deflected it. Sparks flew in the air as the weapons clashed off each other "You think you can beat ME?!"

Ash didn't say anything. He and Chaos Reaper engaged themselves in single combat. On blow after the other, sparks flew as their weapons deflected off each other. Ash moved quickly, fighting fast and hitting hard, even against the overwhelming strength of his opponent… "AGH!" Ash gasped, when Chaos Reaper's punch sent him flying ten metres away and hitting the ground. Chaos Reaper dashed forwards and grabbed Ash up by the front of his shirt. Quickly Ash pulled something out of his pocket and slammed it into Chaos Reaper's face. Chaos Reaper screamed and dropped Ash as he tried to get the sand out of his eyes.

"This city's in the middle of a dessert! You know, sand? You'd think I'd let an opportunity to get this much ground-element ammo pass by?" He smirked as he held out several element capture balls, which each had a sandy colour, meaning that they were all ground-attack balls.

"You'll pay for that!" Chaos Reaper charged forwards, but Ash stepped to the side. Chaos Reaper's vision had been obstructed by the sand

"White Kaiser was also an 'invincible' enemy, but sand in the eyes was able to hurt him, and you're no different!" Ash called, "Another thing. You know I'm a pokémon trainer, and even though I fight without a pokémon a lot of times, I always use them in whenever I get the chance. But I'm not using them right now, WHY?"

"Because Sky Render finished them all off? BLOOD SLASH!" Chaos Reaper wiped the sand completely out of his eyes and slashed at him.

"Whoop" Ash turned to the side a bit, missing the slash "Wrong! I'm not using them because…" he smiled

"I'm the one who's using them!" Misty called from behind. With here were all the pokémon, as well as Pikachu. They've been healed with Hyper Potions and Revives, and they were ready to fight, "I've always wanted to try this for myself!" She pointed forwards "UNISTRIKE!"

"CHROOOAAAR!!!!!"

"QUIIIIIIIIIIIIL!!!!!"

"BULBASAAAAUR!!!!!"

"BAYLEEEEEEF!!!!!"

"SQUIRTEEEEEEL!!!!!!"

"TOTODIIIIIIIIILE!!!!!"

"PIIIII-KAAAAA-CHUUUUUUU!!!!!"

The four different elements flew through the air… Earth, Fire, Wind and Water… perfectly balanced, they joined together, to a single element, with power far surpassing their individual strenght. The ultimate attack, UNISTRIKE!

Chaos Reaper was stunned, his body froze up with fear as the beam headed towards him. Ash dove to the side, but Chaos Reaper wasn't so lucky

**CRRRRAAAASHHHH!**

"AAAAARGGH!" The beam sent him flying. Through the wall, through the bank, the beam had stopped, but the force had thrown him that far. Right into the open vault, he crashed into a metal wall before falling to the floor, "Ugh… argh…" using his scythe for support, he slowly started to get up. That rib cage he wore as body armour was still intact, but lots of it was cracked, and parts of his cape were ripped.

"NOW!" Ash, Misty and all the pokémon charged forwards, slamming the huge metal door shut. The two fire-type pokémon started to flame around the sides of the door, welding it shut. Sure, Chaos Reaper wasn't completely beaten, but they had him sealed up!

"ALL RIGHT!" Ash and Misty high-fived each other, "YES!" The pokémon cheered as well, and Ash and Misty started to calm down. They looked at each other, forgetting that the room was full of pokémon or being shy or anything, they hugged. They broke the hug rather quickly, but continued to gaze into each other's eyes.

"I'm really impressed, you really handled the pokémon well back there." said Ash

"Yeah, but when you were fighting against him, I never seen you fight like that before. You deserve the credit. You were really amazing" Said Misty

"No, you were. Only a great trainer can command the Unistrike, and you did that!"

"No, you're the one. Only someone really brave would jump up and go fight him!"

"So what? Meowth did it before me!"

"But he didn't do nearly as well did he? And who was it who got the idea of locking that guy up?"

"Not mine, it was Ebi's!"

"But you did all the work!"

"Why should I take all the credit for everything? I'm serious! You were great!"

"Was not!"

"Was too!"

"Was not!"

"Was too!"

"Was not!"

"Was too!"

"Was not!"

"Was too!"

"Was not!"

"Was too!"

"Fine then! I was great!" Misty smiled. Both Ash and Misty laughed, they were acting very childish. But something Ash said made Misty think "Ash, when you said that, were you really serious. Did you really think I'm that great?"

"Yeah, I always thought you were great, no… amazing, nice, and even cute…" Ash snapped back to attention "(_ARGH! I can't believe I said that!_)" he thought to himself, going red

"(_AH! I can't believe he said that!_)" Misty also thought, also going red

Neither of them said anything for a while. They were both silent, wondering what was next. They were too embarrassed to look at each other straight in the face. The pokémon went silent, Ash and Misty forgot they were there.

Ash gathered the courage to look "(_Wait, she's also blushing. She's also blushing!_)"

"(_Agh… this is so embarrassing_!)" Misty turned and looked at Ash, "(_But if he's blushing too, then does that mean that he…_?)" she gazed at him

"(_Wa… the way she's looking at me… could that mean that she… likes me? … NO! She's just some uncute girl who doesn't like you the way you think, and never will! She's just… oh why am I even saying this?_)" Ash was all red, "Gah, I argue with myself even more than her. At least I can agree she's pretty…" he sighed, "URK! I… didn't just say that out loud did I?"

"Oh yes you did" Misty smiled, "So, you really think I'm pretty?"

"Uh! NO! No, wait, that's not what I meant to say, it's that um… oh…" Ash sighed

"Oh don't be embarrassed Ash" Misty pinched Ash's cheek, "So I'm amazing, nice pretty too! Anything ELSE you want to tell me?"

"Well… um… wa…" Ash stuttered. He had said too much. "(_oh… How do I get myself out of this? One of the moments I've been waiting for my entire life. She wants to hear it, I wanna say it, but I don't even know what to say! DAMMIT!_)" He looked at her. "(_I try to back out, I'm gonna regret this for the rest of my life 'cus I'm not gonna get this chance again. I come clean and she laughs, then I'm gonna want to open the vault door and jump in with Count Dracula over there. But if I say it, and she feels the same way and's been hiding it too…_)" He thought to himself, "(_AAAARGH! Damn you Mikazuchi, you sadistic bastard!_)" Ash thought angrily, but looked at Misty's face and immediately cooled down "(_But that_ _look she's giving me… I can't look her right in the eyes and lie… can I?_)" Ash thought uneasily to himself

"Well?" Misty asked, breaking Ash's train of thoughts

"(_That does it! My mind's made up! I'm saying it! It's either now or never!_)" Ash finally decided as he stepped back took a deep breath, "Misty" He stood up straight and looked into her eyes, "For a long time, I've wanted to tell you this. I…" He paused. This was so difficult, and it was a miracle he didn't collapse immediately.

Misty looked at him. Ash had her full attention, "(_This is it!_)" she thought to herself excitedly

Ash straightened up "Misty… I want to tell you that…" He heard the sound of some shuffling and looked behind him, at all the pokémon sitting around, "Hey! I don't need any witnesses for this! Return!" He called them back into the pokéballs, and then bent down to talk to Pikachu "(You Pikachu,)" he whispered, "(This is a very personal moment, and I'd prefer it to be private too! Sorry to offend you, but could you wait outside?)" Pikachu sighed and walked out the door. Ash stood up and turned to Misty, who was standing there, waiting impatiently

"Oh uh… sorry" he looked at her, just about everything's been delaying this moment, but now they were by themselves. Ash straightened up, took a deep breath and looked her straight in the eyes "Misty! I-WAAAAAAAGH!!!!!" Whatever he was saying was cut short when a small beam of energy hit him on the side of the head. "OWOWOWOWOW! THAT-FREAKIN'-HURRRRT!" He was rolling on the floor

"AM I INTERUPTING SOMETHING?!" Grand Dreamer shouted. Ash stopped rolling on the floor long enough to get up and look at him. Both of them heard a loud voice yell. Ash and Misty looked. Flying through the air was a HEAVILY bruised, cut and bleeding Grand Dreamer, who suddenly stopped flying and fell, "OW! That paralysis you gave me… do you know HOW much trouble it caused?! I fly at no less that four metres high, and just about every ten feet I move, the paralysis hits me and I drop! Do have ANY IDEA how painful that is on concrete floor that's full of debris consisting almost entirely of TWISTED METAL and BROKEN GLASS?!?!"

"Bad timing GeeDee, you could've waited at least another fifteen seconds…" Misty was mad. Yes, that guy HAD interrupted something important, which was possibly gonna be one of the most important something's of her life

"You have a healing move, you know" Ash crossed his arms

"Oh yeah… forgot about that… uh, GRAND HEALER!" Energy enveloped his body, healing all his cuts and bruises and removing the paralysis

"(cough) Loser", Ash coughed, "What do you want now, GeeDee?"

"GRRRR…" Grand Dreamer growled, "Say that name again and I'll kill you both!"

"How's about we call you GD?" Asked Misty

"That's the same thing! But spelled differently!"

"Well what do you know? Super Fiends CAN read and write. You win the bet, and owe you a lunch, Misty" Ash smirked and crossed his arms

"GRRRR… I warned you… to…" Grand Dreamer was growling, and the smirks faded from Ash and Misty's faces as Grand Dreamer started to glow, "STOP… CALLING… ME… THAT NAME!!!!!! RRRRRAAAAAGH!" his shout echoed throughout the city as he sped forwards, ready to finish off the disrespectful Ash and Misty for good…

_The night is young, and the fiends are still fresh. After going through all that trouble and sacrifices, along with the biggest fight Team Rocket had put up in history just to get Chaos Reaper temporarily subdued, they still don't get a single moment's rest because they have Grand Dreamer to deal with! Well, despite almost admitting how the two felt for each other… this is a sign that the AAML is coming very soon! Find out what happens next time on PUA!_

TO BE CONTINUED


	20. Till Death do us Part

_Season Finale_- Till death do us part…

_I may have been in many dangerous situations before, but nothing comes close to this. The situation is critical, this is the hardest battle I have ever fought… against enemies holding powers I could have never dreamed imaginable. Not only are these Super Fiends more powerful than ever, but with the knowledge that there is a Chosen One among them… it's almost like they're unbeatable. But yet… no matter how dark the situation gets, I will never give up. More than anything, even more than becoming a Pokémon Master, my friends are what I treasure the most, and this is their time of need. So long as I draw breath I shall fight to protect the people I love… I will never back down…_

_Ash Ketchum_

(Location- Grim Void)

"Ugh… those idiots! What do they think they're doing!" Ebi exclaimed, "Are they trying to get themselves killed?"

"What do you mean?" asked Brock

"The more they provoke Grand Dreamer, the more he'll lash out at them! Just because Ash and Misty didn't get eliminated right away has made them cocky enough to think they could insult this guy and walk away unscathed!" Ebi gripped his knuckles tight, "Don't forget, if anything happens to those two, then it's all over for the rest of us! Have they forgotten that already?"

"I don't think they're provoking him simply for the fun of it, I think they might have a plan." Said Tracey

"Maybe… but whatever it is, they're taking a big risk." Said Ebi. Making the Fiends angry was NOT a smart thing to do… stuff that incurs their wrath like calling Twin/Grand Dreamer by his funny-sounding initials… or making a wisecrack about Sky Render's haircut were the sort of things that could get you killed.

"Excuse me, you wouldn't happen to be talking about the Super Fiends, are you?" somebody asked

"Um, yeah, we are. Why?" Brock answered, he didn't turn around

"Because I suspected it was the work of a Super Fiend, or in this case, two. I didn't know for sure, but now I've got confirmation" the guy explained

"Uh-huh, for all the good it'll do ya… even if we were out there then…" Brock said as he turned his head to look at the guy, and gasped. It was someone he never expected to see "Gary? Gary Oak?!"

"Yep, it's me" Said Gary, "And you're Ash's friends, aren't you?"

(Location- Marble City)

"GRAND DREAM!"

"CAPTURE!"

Grand Dreamer used the mind burn version of his attack and Ash threw an element capture ball, capturing the attack. The ball changed into a silvery colour, meaning it was now a psychic-attack ball.

"You think you can stand against ME?!" Grand Dreamer shouted

"That seems to be what I've been doing this whole time GeeDee!" Ash replied

"GRRRR! STOP CALLING ME THAT! GRAND DREAM!" Grand Dreamer shot the gigantic beam. Ash jumped on the QuickSilver and sped upwards, out of the way

"You have to be quicker than that!" Ash stuck out his tongue, and Pikachu who was riding on Ash's shoulders made a face at Grand Dreamer

"Oh, so it's an air battle you want! Fine with me!" Grand Dreamer jumped into the air and levitated himself so he was at the same level as Ash. Both stood four stories above the ground, "GRAND DREAM!" Grand Dreamer shot the attack, but Ash manoeuvred skilfully and evaded it

"Thunderbolt!" Ash shouted. Pikachu climbed to the top of Ash's head and jumped

"PI-KA-CHUUUUU!!!!!!" Pikachu fired the electric attack

"AH!" Grand Dreamer moved to the side, and the high-voltage bolt nearly hit him. The lightning hit the wall and left a small, scorched crater, "That was close…!"

"SILVER BULLET!" Ash shouted

**SMAAASH!**

"AGH…" Grand Dreamer gasped, his breath knocked right out of his lungs. Ash had used that nitro boost in the air to gain the speed, and tackled him HARD in the gut, "Gah… GRAND-" the moment he spoke, Ash grabbed him and started hitting him with his fists, keeping him from speaking!

"No you don't!" Ash shouted, not letting him call out his attacks, "All your attacks are psychic! They're not designed for close combat! All I have to do is hit you before you can use your attacks!" he continued to beat him up, "Ebi was right, between the two, you are the weaker one! Transformed or not, you're pathetic up close!"

"GRRRAAAAAGH! GET AWAY FROM ME!" Grand Dreamer tried to fight Ash off, but Ash was far stronger than him

"It's over…" Said Ash. Grand Dreamer badly bruised and beaten, and couldn't even stay in the air, but he didn't fall, because Ash grabbed him by the front of the shirt. The QuickSilver started to go higher, till they were at the same level of the tallest buildings, "Make one move and I'll drop you! Ash growled "Our friends that were sent to the void, tell me right now how to get them back!" Ash commanded him, but no response, "Answer me!" he yelled. Ash then noticed something, Grand Dreamer was muttering something under his breath! Ash then looked in horror as he saw Grand Dreamer pulled out a glowing Tarot Card! "NO! I CAN'T LET HIM-" Ash's fist flew towards Grand Dreamer's face, trying to stop it…

**KAASMMMACK!**

"WAAAAA!"

**CRASH!**

Ash was sent flying and crashed into another building. Ash started to fall from the air, but he quickly straightened him self up and raised back to the level he was fighting Grand Dreamer. The super fiend smirked as he floated in the air, fully healed and in one hand holding a card "Weren't expecting such a powerful punch from a weakling like me, Ketchum?" Grand Dreamer sneered.

"That was you?!" Ash exclaimed. "That's not possible!"

"Oh really?" Grand Dreamer smirked "Not if I have one of these!" Grand Dreamer held up the card… '_La Rétribution Féroce_' "Fierce Retribution! The card took away all the damage you inflicted on me, and gave me the strength to give it to you! The whole time when you were beating me up, you might as well have been hitting yourself!" Grand Dreamer laughed, "GRAND DREAM!"

"WAAAAAAGH!!!!!"

From the ground, Misty was watching in horror at the battle going on, "Come on Ash! You can do it! I know you can!" She kept saying it, but she felt so useless, because there was nothing she could do to help

(Location- Grim Void)

"The rumours are true! Ash is challenging the Super Fiends!" Gary crossed his arms

"More than that, he actually wins" Said Ebi, "The number who have challenged and fallen in the face of the Super Fiends is beyond count, but Ash Ketchum is probably the first to challenge them to this degree!"

"I know" Said Gary, "A lot of those people challenging the fiends are pokémon masters, but none of them ever won. But still… from what I've seen, the fiends are strong, but not invincible, so how come they never lost?"

"It's because the fiends fight in battles using the Rupture Battle rules" Said Ebi

"Rupture what?" Asked Brock

"It was the way people used to fight in battles in the past, when people would jump straight into the action along with their pokémon. They were unpredictable matches, and anything can happen…" Ebi explained

(Location- Marble City)

"PIKACHUUUUUUU!" Pikachu attacked Grand Dreamer with lightning

"HM!!" Grand Dreamer created a psychic barrier, blocking the electricity, "You should really learn your place you little rat! PSYCHIC HOLD!" Grand Dreamer glared at Pikachu. Pikachu was all of the sudden immobilized, trapped by his psychic power! "Now you know how it feels like to be paralysed while flying! Now to show you how it feels to be paralysed when FALLING! HA!" Grand Dreamer shouted as his hand shot forwards and a blow of psychic energy threw Ash backwards. Pikachu was thrown off Ash's shoulders and started to fall to the ground

"PIKACHU! NO!" Ash screamed

"PIKACHU!" Misty ran forwards and jumped, catching Pikachu before he hit the ground, "Don't worry, you're safe" Pikachu was shaken big time. Misty looked up at Ash and called, "Ash! I got him! This is it! Don't hold back anymore!" Misty called upwards

"Wasn't gonna…" Said Ash as he started cracking his knuckles

(Location- Grim Void)

"There were many fighters who have trained their bodies, beyond what we would consider human. Mastering the art of fighting, hand to hand or with weapons… some even attained the power to control the elements" Said Ebi, "In the present day, there is little need for people to train to such extremes, and the number of fighters with this sort of power has diminished. The Super Fiends consist of some of the last remaining people like that… and they are quite exceptional even among those standards. Some of them train pokémon, but even without their assistance, the team consisting of less than ten individuals has the power of several thousand men."

"Whoa…" Everyone stared at Ebi. "Humans stronger than pokémon… I never thought that was possible…" said Gary, "I guess human beings aren't as weak as we were always made to believe, and Ash becoming like that…"

"No…" Said Ebi, "Ash Ketchum… is far beyond that level…" he straightened his glasses, "You know how among Pokémon, there are ones we deem 'Legendary'? Well, the same rule applies to humans…" he explained. "Over the course of history, there have always been individuals, whose strength is unmatched by anyone, whose abilities will take them higher than everyone, whose power could change the world itself. They are… the Chosen Ones."

"Chosen Ones?" Everyone stared at Ebi

"I think heard about this" Tracey spoke up, "Back in the Orange Islands, when we were on Shamouti. The locals called Ash the Chosen One…"

"That had little to do with it. The festival in Shamouti, though it honours the Chosen Ones… sadly it has become commercial." Sighed Ebi, "There are all sorts of legends regarding the Chosen Ones, some say they are people who have been granted this power by the gods, others say that it is the earth itself that acknowledges the individual and given them power. Whatever it really is remains a mystery… but in this generation there are two Chosen Ones… Ash Ketchum and Sky Render"

"Hm…" Gary looked down, "Neither of these sounds like levels I can or would try to attain… training my body so hard I can control the elements. As for Chosen Ones being acknowledged by the gods and the spirit of earth… it all sounds so…"

"There are plenty of things in this world that can't be explained by science. Most people don't believe in the existence of spirits and gods, which is why even I have been practically exiled from the scientific community" Said Ebi

"Ebi, tell me more about these rupture battles." Said Gary, "Let's see if I could use any knowledge of it to my advantage"

"They were nicknamed Rupture battles, because they were more violent than any pokémon match today. People stopped having those because the sorts of serious injuries they received. That's when they started using only pokémon to fight, and the old rules were pretty much forgotten" Ebi explained, "People who fight by the regular pokémon battle rules can't win against a rupture fighter, because there is practically no rules, the human could just jump in, and run past the pokémon and take out the opponent trainer, or even order his own pokémon to do it" Said Ebi

"Then that's cheating!" Tracey exclaimed

"Cheating only applies to games, hence league-sanctioned pokémon battles… but in the real world, this is what you'd call fighting, pure and simple. You'd think the Fiends would restrain themselves and put all their power to waste by NOT fighting, just so they could play by the pokémon league's rules? These are people with strength that surpass even Level 100 pokémon, and they're not gonna waste their abilities by obeying the pokémon league."

"Hmm… Super Fiends" Gary said to himself, "After fighting those Team Rocket guys and Missingno gang, Ash sure has moved up in the crime fighting business"

"You have no idea," said Ebi, "How about you?"

"I've also taken up crime fighting, and I'm pretty well known…" Said Gary "While Ash takes on people like the Super Fiends, I fight against criminal rings and stuff. You know, counterfeiters, drug dealers, smugglers, terrorists, mafias… you name it. I've gotten strong, and busting up criminal rings is nothing new to me. But for Ash to be fighting them… a group that even I wouldn't dare challenge… but somehow, I know he can do it."

(Location- Marble City)

"MAXIMUM AFTERBURNER!" Ash charged forwards, riding on the QuickSilver through the air as he chased Grand Dreamer who was also flying at a high speed

"GRAND DREAM!" Grand Dreamer shot a small beam behind him at Ash. Ash swerved to the right and missed it. "GRAND DREAM!" He shot it to where Ash was, but Ash swerved to the left. Grand Dreamer shot another beam and Ash moved to the right. This pattern continued to repeat itself, left-right-left-right-left-right-RIGHT!

**BANG!**

"WAAAA!!!" Ash screamed as the beam hit him full in the stomach. He began to spin out of control, "STOOOOP!" He screamed, causing the boosters to turn down and the QuickSilver was slowing down, but he was still spinning…

**CRASH!**

"AGH!" Ash exclaimed as he crashed into an alley, hitting a bunch of garbage cans, "Ow…" he groaned. "GRRR… why you…" growled

"What's the matter Ketchum?" Grand Dreamer called downwards and started laughing. Ash looked pretty bad right now. He was badly bruised, sweating, bleeding and cut all over from all those hits he had taken. "It's a pity! I was hoping you'd put up more of a challenge! GRAND DREAM!" Ash jumped on the board and moved to the left, missing it… but Grand Dreamer shot it again, hitting him dead-on in the chest. Ash and the QuickSilver fell to the ground after he had been hit.

"Ungh…" Ash struggled to get up. He unbuckled the QuickSilver from his feet so he could get up and walk, as well as he placed it on his right arm. Ash was breathing heavily, dazed, wobbling and struggling to stay on his feet. He nearly collapsed, but his instincts kept telling him not to give up. Ash struck a fighting stance

"(Whew…)" Grand Dreamer sighed as he landed, wiping some sweat off his forehead "Well, it's been a long night, but this is getting old. Time to finish you off!" Grand Dreamer aimed his hands forwards and hit Ash with a small burst of energy, throwing him back "I could read your mind like a book, Ketchum!" He said as Ash got up, "There's nothing you can do! I know all your moves, all your strategies! You may have the edge up close, but I'm not gonna let you get anywhere near me! Sure, go ahead and try! You can barely stand up, much less move around!" Grand Dreamer taunted him, "Don't worry about breaking your girlfriend, what's her name… Misty's heart when you're dead! I'll compensate her for it with a free trip to the void!"

"NO YOU WON'T!" Ash shouted as he charged forwards at an amazing speed, which even took Grand Dreamer by surprise

**BAM!**

"AGH!" Grand Dreamer was sent flying when Ash swung his right armoured arm and slammed him. "Ow…" Grand Dreamer looked at Ash, who was charging madly at him, "GRAND DREAM!" This huge beam slammed Ash and sent him flying and crashing into the wall. The beam ended and Ash got right back up and charged again. "GRAND DREAM!" Grand Dreamer shot the beam again at Ash, only for him to get back up "DAMMIT! GRAND DREAM!" He shot them again and again, but Ash kept getting up and charging. Grand Dreamer was gasping for air, he was wasting all his energy and not doing anything! "WHY WON'T YOU STAY DOWN?! GRAND DREAM!!!" He shouted as he fired the next beam

**CLANG! CRASH!**

These two sounds echoed throughout the city. Ash stood there, his head facing down, and without looking up, he swung his right arm and hit the beam, sending it crashing to the side

"WHAT?!" Grand Dreamer exclaimed, "N-no…" he gasped… that boy… where is he gaining his strength from?! "That's impossible!"

"Well someone forgot to tell me that!" Ash smirked as he ran forwards

**KAPOW!!!**

"AGH!" Grand Dreamer exclaimed when Ash uppercutted him

"It was also because you're starting to weaken! Your attacks are losing strength and each one you do is weaker than the next!" said Ash as he took a fighting stance

"(_DAMN HIM! HE'S MAKING A FOOL OUT OF ME!_)" Grand Dreamer cursed to himself as he got up, "(_What can I do to beat this moron?_)" he continued to think. When he said the word 'moron' an idea sprung into his head and he started laughing

"Uh… I believe I'm the one who's winning, right? What have you got to laugh about?" Asked Ash, but Grand Dreamer was laughing even more hysterically, "Hello? GeeDee?" Grand Dreamer didn't even seem to notice that Ash called him by that embarrassing name, "Man, this guy's gone crazy. HEY! GEEDEE!"

Grand Dreamer definitely heard this one and stopped laughing. He didn't seem angry about being called GeeDee, instead he was smiling unpleasantly, "Ketchum, you are a formidable opponent. The amount of damage you can sustain and continue to fight is remarkable, almost unnatural. But while your body may be tough, your mind is very weak! Now, with everything I got, get ready to feel the burn! The Mind Burn that is! HAAAAAA!" He roared…

"AH…" Ash gasped, as a wave of psychic energy flew forward. The ground was cracking, windows shattered… and Ash immediately dropped to his knees in pain, clenching tight onto his skull and screaming in agony…

"HAHAHA!" Grand Dreamer laughed, "Nothing will save you now! I will destroy your mind… suffer… and DIE!" He shouted and forced more power into the mind burn

"AH… AAAHHH…!!! GRRRR…!" Ash teeth were clenched tight and he slowly got up. His head felt like it would explode, and his brain was on fire. Almost nothing would be able to keep him up, but there was one thought that sustained him

"YOU JUST DON'T KNOW WHEN TO GIVE UP DO YOU?!" Grand Dreamer shouted and maximized the force of the mind burning attack

"RAAAAAAARGH!" Ash shouted as he ran forwards and slammed Grand Dreamer with all his strength, sending Grand Dreamer crashing HARD into the wall. Grand Dreamer groaned and fell to the ground, that hit did a lot of damage. Ash felt the attack fade away, and leaving no lingering pain

"How… could an idiot with such a weak mind survive that? You should have been dead by now!" Grand Dreamer struggled to get up

"Your attack was aimed only at my head!" replied Ash; "You were planning on harming Misty and throwing her into that stupid void! My last move wasn't under the control of my brain, but my body was acting from my heart!"

"GRRRRR… NO… I… REFUSE… TO BE…" Grand Dreamer growled, "DEFEATED! GRAND DREAM!" he shouted as he aimed to shoot the beam directly into Ash's face. Ash flinched, but opened his eyes. Grand Dreamer looked really stupid standing like that, because no beam was coming out "NO! IT CAN'T BE! I DON'T BELIEVE IT! THIS IS NOT HAPPENING!" Grand Dreamer screamed

Ash knew what it was immediately "I get it! The weakness! Ebi said you got more powerful, but not stronger or more skilled! When transformed into Grand Dreamer by the power of one, you gained powerful new attacks, but that's all! Using these attacks has nothing to do with your own strength, but rather your mind, and it hasn't improved one bit from before you transformed! Basically you are Twin Dreamer using moves that cost too much energy to fight guys like me! And now, you're out of power! Physically you're too weak to fight!" Said Ash, "You lose!"

"You figured all that by yourself Ash? I'm impressed!" Misty and Pikachu appeared

"GRRRR…" Grand Dreamer was enraged, "It's not over yet…" he pulled out the deck of tarot cards, "I still have the trump card up my sleeves! FATE SHUFFLE!" the cards glowed as they shuffled themselves. He pulled out the top card and looked at it. Grand Dreamer sneered as he turned it to show to them '_Rugir Du Lion_' "The lion's roar… perfect!" He took a deep breath and let out the most fearsome roar you ever heard. The blood-curdling scream acted like a shockwave. It shook the buildings, cracked the ground and shattered windows. Ash, Misty and Pikachu were thrown back and slammed into the wall from the explosive roar. "Heh!" Grand Dreamer laughed. Ash, Misty and Pikachu got up, but they were really shaken from the attack

"W-W-Waaaaaa…" Ash trembled

"W-Watch out… H-He's u-using a-another one…" Misty held onto him

"P-P-Pikaaa…"

"FATE SHUFFLE!" Grand Dreamer shuffled the cards again and pulled it out and held it over his head, but there was no reaction, "Hmm?" he looked at it, "what?!" He exclaimed, as the card flew out of his hands "NO!"

The card flew over to Ash and Misty. It was glowing bright, so they could see it. '_La force de l'amour_' "La what?" Asked Ash

"Dammit! Out of all the cards, I had to pick up the most useless card I could ever have picked!" Grand Dreamer cursed, "And why did my transformation come with that one anyways?!"

"Ash… I think I get it" Misty looked at it, "La Force De L'Amour, I don't know the full definition, but I know forces means strength, and amour means love! But He's not in love with anybody, and therefore it wouldn't work for him, so…" Said Misty

"…it is coming to us!" Ash exclaimed. He turned his head and looked at Misty, and Misty turned her head and looked at Ash. They gazed into each others eyes, the card began to glitter. Colourful sparkles appeared in the air, surrounding Ash and Misty. The colourful lights began to circle around them, faster and faster. Both of their hearts were beating fast, but knowing they would be together gave them newfound strength, their bodies were re-energized and all their wounds were completely healed!

The sparkles faded and the card stopped glittering. It floated in the air, and Misty picked it, "Thanks!"

"NO!" Grand Dreamer growled, "HOW DARE YOU!" He snarled, "I WILL NOT LET YOU WIN! FATE SHUFFLE!" He screamed as he shuffled through his deck of cards. Just a card, any card will do! "AHA!" He grabbed the random card and held it high… the card that read '_Justice_'. "PREPARE TO MEET YOUR DOOM!! IT IS TIME FOR MY JUSTICE! GO!" He shouted and the _Justice_ began to glow. Out of the sky, a pillar of golden energy shone down… on Grand Dreamer! "WHAT?!" he exclaimed

"You tried to use the card that stood for Justice against us!" said Ash

"You should be happy! You wanted your Justice, and here it is!" Said Misty

"N… NOOOOOOOOOO!" Grand Dreamer screamed. The earth trembled once more, as the shining light completely enveloped Grand Dreamer. The light changed its shape to a ball around his body, keeping him from moving…

**KABOOOOOM!!!!!!**

"AAAAAAARRRGH!" His voice echoed throughout the lands. The explosion covered the entire city, but nothing was broken or moved by the explosion. The only one that felt the blow was Grand Dreamer, "How… could I… lose?" those were the last words that left his mouth. His power had been drained completely, and he was heavily wounded. Grand Dreamer collapsed to the ground, defeated… the same silver glow that turned him into Grand Dreamer surrounded his body for a few seconds, but vanished along with the silver cape, crystal ball pendant and the rest of the Grand Dreamer costume, leaving the defeated Twin Dreamer in his regular attire face flat on the floor, "S… Sky… I-I've failed…!" his senses faded. He blacked out. The powerful Super Fiend, the psychic warrior Twin Dreamer was defeated!

The card '_Justice_' slowly descended from the air, and Ash caught this one. He turned to Misty and smiled, "Well I guess we won!"

"And we both know who the credit goes to" Misty smiled brightly

"Not Misty…" said Ash

"Not Ash…" said Misty

"IT GOES TO THE BOTH OF US!" The two cheered, jumping up and down, hugging and laughing happily

Ash held on to Misty's hand, and Misty held back. The events that have just passed here have brought them closer together. Suddenly the two of them went very red "Um… why did that 'amour' card work on us?" Asked Ash

"Because it wouldn't work for a scoundrel like him" Said Misty

"Maybe… but if the card symbolises love, and worked only for the us…" said Ash, going even redder

"Uh…" Misty started going red

"Could it have to do with… us?" Asked Ash, "Does it reflect feelings that you and me have?"

"All I know is that it only works for two who love each other!" Said Misty, gasping at what she just said

"Then that means…" Ash's heart started beating, as well as Misty's. Everything went silent as they looked into each other's eyes "Could we really be…" Ash asked "…in… love?"

Ash and Misty looked at the ground, their faces burning red. They both knew it was unavoidable now. Misty finally spoke up "Ash?"

"Yes Misty?"

"Do you…" Misty paused "Do you love me…?"

The question made Ash jump. He nearly fainted from the question, but he straightened himself up. Closing his eyes, he took a breath… "Misty…" He held her hands firmly. "It took me too long to realise this." He said calmly, looking into her eyes, "Yes… I do… I love you… with all my heart!"

"Oh Ash…" Misty smiled, tears gathered in her eyes. She jumped forwards and hugged him tightly "I LOVE YOU TOO!"

Ash was a bit surprised, but he calmed down and wrapped his arms around her. They could feel each others heartbeats So many things were going through their minds

"(I can't believe it! This is the best thing that's ever happened to me! Ash loves me… he really loves me!)" Misty thought to herself, resting her head on Ash's shoulders

"(_Oh man… this is the single happiest moment of my life…_)" Ash thought to himself, and looked at Misty

The two embraced each other, followed by their first passionate kiss. It lasted for an entire minute before they let go. Both of them were extremely red, but it was wonderful.

"I love you Misty"

"I love you Ash"

(Location- Grim Void)

"Way to go Ash… way to go" Gary smiled. Grand Dreamer's been defeated, and Ash is with Misty! Gary sighed and reflected on the past. Both he and Ash have really come a long way, and they have matured greatly. Gary was no longer a self-absorbed conceited person and is now a formidable trainer, highly intelligent and a great adventurer. Ash was no longer a loudmouth idiot… well not a loudmouth anyways, but he was also a formidable trainer, a great adventurer, a fighter, and now he even has a girlfriend, "You've really been growing up Ash, we all have…"

"They did it!" Ebi and Amaebi cheered

"(Sniff…) That was so beautiful!" Jessie and James cried

"After all this time, they finally said it!" Said Brock

"I just love happy endings!" Said Meowth

"Uh guys…? I'd really hate to be a killjoy, but… um… isn't that Chaos Reaper still around?" Asked Tracey

"Ah don't worry!" Said Ebi, holding up the EbiDex; "If you'd look at this thing, you could see that he's locked up safely in the vault!" He said proudly and looked at the map screen on the EbiDex "That's strange. I wonder, how come this thing isn't showing his location in the vault? And how come the door's wide open, and looks like a vampire's been savagely beating and slashing at it until he tore the thing right off its hinges? And how come it's showing Chaos Reaper running through the city, and ready to spread unprecedented chaos and destroying everything in his path while currently heading in Ash and Misty's direction?" Asked Ebi, "URK!" He suddenly realized what was going on

"Um… this isn't a good sign right?" asked Gary, "Because if they lose, then will we be stuck here forever?"

Everyone sweatdropped as they watched Ebi lay out furniture around his area on the void. Ebi placed a sign that said '_Home Sweet Void_' before seating himself in one of the comfy chairs and reading a newspaper

"By the looks of it, yes" Tracey sweatdropped

(Location- Marble City)

"Um, Misty?" Ash asked rather embarrassed

"Yes Ash?"

"You have no idea how happy us being together has made me, but you know what would make me even happier?" he asked

"What is it Ash? Come on, you can tell me" said Misty

"I can't breathe" said Ash

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" Misty let go, letting Ash breathe again

"Whew… thanks…" said Ash as he looked at Misty "Wow… I can't believe I never noticed how beautiful you look."

"Oh, thank you!" Misty blushed at Ash's compliment

"Yeah… things are so great. I've never been happier. I never though this day would come…" Ash said as he put his arms around her, "I wanted to tell you a long time ago, but all of those times, I spent fighting, and we've never been alone together long enough to…" he stopped and turned to his pokémon, who were all sitting there watching the scene, "Hey! I said don't need any witnesses for this! RETURN!" he called them back into their pokéballs. "Pikachu, do you mind? We'd like some alone time?" Pikachu sighed and walked off, "Now where were we?"

"You were saying how we were never alone long enough to tell each other how we felt. I mean, it's really hard to believe it. Me and you, girlfriend and boyfriend… I wonder how everyone's gonna react when they find out about this?" asked Misty

"Yeah, I wonder… just better hope my mom doesn't find out about this otherwise…" Ash stopped. He felt his trainer instincts kick in. The trainer instincts have always served him well, and saved his life many times, because it never failed and always told him when there was- _DANGER!_

"Pikachu!" Pikachu ran back into the scene, trying to warn them of something

"ASH KETCHUM!" a loud voice shouted, making them both jump. Floating in the air a few metres in front of them was a ghostly dark grey transparent figure, nearly impossible to see. It landed on the ground and then it regained its solidity and colour. Standing in front of them was Chaos Reaper!

"WAAA!"

"EEEEK!"

Ash and Misty jumped back, Pikachu's cheeks started sparking.

Chaos Reaper was not in a good mood, "Stuffing that explosive in my mouth and detonating it was not very nice, and doing the 'nutcracker' with that hammer was most unpleasant." He spoke coldly. Chaos Reaper continued "You were already on the last straw when you turned the lights of the city back on. They really burn, you know? But you just had to go out and hit me with that beam and then lock me in that vault with more explosives!" Chaos Reaper spoke in an angry tone, "The only thing holding me back from ripping that door out of the way was fear of those painful explosives. When that tarot card that defeated GeeDee was used, he wasn't the only one hit. Though the vault did protect me from the power-draining effects, the explosion still knocked me over, onto one of those balls, making them all blow up in my face. It was painful, very painful indeed…" he growled, "I have spent a lifetime in the darkness, living with horrors you could not even begin to imagine… and yet, after all you've done, the once fearless Super Fiend of the darkness now has a phobia…" He growled even louder

Ash, Misty and Pikachu backed off nervously

"You've insulted me… too many times… you are beyond redemption…" he snarled, "I'LL KILL YOU BOTH!!!!!" he screamed as he charged forwards

"MOVE MISTY!" Ash pushed her to the side, "WAAA!"

"BLOOD WHIP!" Chaos Reaper lashed at Ash with the blood-soaked black whip

**CRACK!**

"AHHH!" Ash screaned in pain when the whip hit him on the shoulder… that hurt a lot more than it should have… it wasn't a normal whip!!

"DIE! RAAAAAAARGH!!!!!!!" he snarled and charged forwards, fangs and claws bared

"SILVER BULLET!" yelled Ash. The QuickSilver on his arm shot forwards at a high speed, but pulled him as well "WAAAAA!" Ash slammed into Chaos Reaper at full force, but the super fiend didn't even feel it. "WA!" Ash moved his head when Chaos Reaper used Blood Slash, narrowly missing it from tearing his head off, but it still grazed him on the side of the cheek. "Oh yeah?! TAKE THIS!" Ash pulled out a nitro ball in his left hand and swung it towards Chaos Reaper's face, but the vampire grabbed Ash's wrist, keeping the ball from touching his face "GRRRR…" Ash struggled

"Give it up, weakling" Chaos Reaper growled as he flipped Ash over his head and slammed his body to the ground, but kept Ash's hand still to keep the ball from detonating. "You are very stupid indeed. Detonating it in my face wouldn't kill me, but it would have definitely blown your hand right off" Chaos Reaper grabbed the nitro ball out of Ash's hand, "Let's see how you like getting these blown up in YOUR face!" He snarled as he held it in his hand and swung it down, towards Ash's head…

"SILVER BULLET!!!!!" Ash screamed immediately, before the ball could touch him. The QuickSilver pulled Ash out of Chaos Reaper's grip.

"AH!" Chaos Reaper exclaimed as he hit Nitro ball against the ground!

**KABOOM!**

"AAAARGH!" Chaos Reaper screamed as the ball exploded in his hand. Though it didn't harm his body very much, it was still very painful and he was extremely shaken up by it

"Heh! It may not be the weakness that came with the transformation, but these nitro balls work really well! YEAH!" Ash and Misty high-fived each other

"GRRRRR…" Chaos Reaper growled and got up

"Wa!" Ash looked at him, "Here Misty! Take this and stand back!" He passed her the transceiver phone. Ash stepped towards the Super Fiend

"Heh…" Fighting Ash wasn't what he had in mind "BLOOD WHIP!" Chaos Reaper shouted as he lashed at Misty with the whip

"EEAAAH!" Misty screamed as the whip hit her and threw her back

"MISTY!!!" Ash screamed, and turned to the one who attacked her, "Why you… GO!!!!" Ash threw his pokéballs, releasing his entire team

"You have got to be kidding" Chaos Reaper was unimpressed

"UNISTRIKE!!!" Ash shouted…

Before the pokémon could move attacks, Chaos Reaper dashed forwards, "MORTAL REAPER!" With a sweep of his scythe, all the pokémon screamed as the unholy weapon passed through them, banishing them to the void before they could attack, "It doesn't matter how powerful your attack is, as long as I don't give you the chance to use it it's useless!" shouted Chaos Reaper

"NOOO!" Ash screamed… this was not supposed to happen! All his pokémon…! He was fighting alone now! Ash looked up, "WA!" Ash exclaimed as Chaos Reaper whipped at him with the whip. Ash quickly raised his right arm just in time to defend the attack, "Huh?" he sweatdropped and looked at the QuickSilver, "eep"

Chaos Reaper wasn't hitting him with the whip. Instead, it had wrapped around his arm. "COME HERE!" he shouted as he pulled the whip, pulling Ash up close

"Waaa…" Ash said in terror as he looked at the vampire's face, but shook off the fear and aimed his arm upwards, "SILVER B-"

**SMACK!**

"ARGH!" Ash took a heavy blow on the face. Chaos Reaper wasn't gonna let him say the words and break free

Chaos Reaper held Ash still and opened up the QuickSilver compartments. Though the QuickSilver was indestructible from the outside, the same thing couldn't be said for the insides, "Where is it you keep those damn balls? Is it in here?" He said as he tore a bunch of circuits out of it, "Or is it HERE?" He ripped out more circuits and wires, "Here it is!" He exclaimed as he grabbed the nitro ball transporter and tore it out. Gripping it tight in his cold hands, he crushed it to bits

"STOP IT! SILVER BULLET!" Ash shouted, but no response. The nitro ball transport system was gone, and so was the nitro boost that was used for Silver Bullet, "NO! You broke it!"

"And that's supposed to make me feel bad?" Chaos Reaper sneered

"LET GO!" Ash shouted as he started flailing his arms madly, but Chaos Reaper didn't feel the hits, "ACK!" he gasped as Chaos Reaper's hand shot up and grabbed him by the throat, cutting off his air

"Ketchum… you don't have to worry about any Mortal Reaper attacks, because banishing you to the Grim Void is a fate too good for you, and rather than hack you up with my scythe, I just thought I could do that anytime as Goth, but as Chaos Reaper, I'll tear you apart with my bare hands!" Chaos Reaper smiled evilly.

"(Wheeze) don't forget… (Gasp) when I fight, I never fight alone!" Ash grinned

"ICE PILLAR!" They heard Misty's voice shout. Chaos Reaper turned his head to the side and saw the huge pillar flying towards his face

**CHING!**

That high pitched-sound rang through the air. Chaos Reaper was quicker than the eye. He reacted immediately and sliced the ice pillar before it could touch him "too slow" he said plainly and tightened his grip on Ash's neck. Ash struggled as hard as he could. He punched, he kicked, and anything to break the iron grip…! The pokémon were all attacking Chaos Reaper back, but he didn't seem to feel them. "MORTAL REAPER!" still keeping his grip tight on Ash's neck, he moved and swiped at them, banishing them out of existence.

"YOU LET HIM GO RIGHT NOW!" Misty screamed. Enraged that this villain was trying to harm the one she loved, she charged forwards, swinging the heavy sledgehammer

**SLAM!!!**

"ARGH!" Chaos Reaper shouted. The blow from the hammer was as strong as the UniStrike! Chaos Reaper groaned, but didn't loosen his grip on Ash's neck. Chaos Reaper was dazed, he was staggering, and he was hurt badly… "grah… you…" he straightened up, shaking off the dizziness, yet the pain on the back of his head was intense, "DO NOT INTERFERE, GIRL!!!!!"

**SMACK!**

"AAAAAGH!" Misty screamed. Chaos Reaper slammed her with his fist and sent her crashing into a wall. She hit her head and blacked out…

"N-no… m-m-Mistyyyyy…" Ash coughed, his vision was fading. His arms and legs stopped moving. The world had turned black, and everything was… over?

(Location- Grim Void)

"ASH! MISTY!" Brock and Tracey screamed

"YOU CAN'T LET HIM WIN!!!" Amaebi, Jessie, James and Meowth yelled in horror

"ASH! USE THE POWER OF ONE! IT'S THE ONLY WAY YOU CAN WIN THIS!!!" Ebi shouted as loud as he could. "IT'S OUR ONLY HOPE!!!"

"Ash… no…" Said Gary "I've known you since childhood… we've been like brothers, always working together, always thinking alike… until we started that stupid feud… but deep down you're still my friend Ash… and I'm saying this now, don't give in to him! Don't let him win! Get up! GET UP!!!!!!!"

(Location- Ash's mind)

Though Ash's mind was going blank he could still hear those voices, but barely "(_Huh? Voices?_)" Ash was still alive, but he couldn't think straight, "(_Those voices… yes, I know them… they belonged to my friends…_)" out of the blackness, the image of his friends came into his mind, "(_My friends… we've been through a lot together… and then there's Misty…_)" The image of Misty came into his mind, "(_Yeah… she was a great person. No wonder why I fell in love with her… I really wanted to share a long and happy life with her… going out… growing up… maybe even get married to her someday…_)" he let out a deep sigh, "(_But it's all gonna end right now? Like this?_)" He started to feel anger, "(_No… It can't end this way… I'm not ready to go just yet! I have too much to live for to die right now!_)" He felt strength within his heart, "(_Everything I had worked so had to get… my friends, my pokémon, Misty's love… I risked everything to get where I am, and I will not let anyone take that all away from me! Not now, not ever!_)"

Suddenly, Ash saw a blinding flash of golden light, shining bright light that cut through the darkness. Ash saw the light, and he knew what it was. As he approached it, he felt strength in himself. He felt all the loyalty of his friends, the love from Misty, and the hope of all of them combined. It strengthened him… he felt it surging through his body… IT WAS TIME TO FIGHT!

(Location- Marble City)

"Heh… looks like the wimp's finally passed…" said Chaos Reaper, "that was much tougher than I thought it would be, but either ways… I won" he smirked, "You may not be as fragile as a regular human, but you're still… hmm?" something caught his eye. For a second he saw Ash's finger twitch, "Feh… I must be seeing things… Hmm… why does he feel so hot?" Wondered Chaos Reaper, "Argh… not just hot… burning!" He gritted his teeth, it hurt just to touch Ash! "What!?" Chaos Reaper gasped. It was Ash… he was moving! And not only that… the QuickSilver on his right arm was starting to glow, the wounds on Ash's body were healing… he was alive! "NO…! IT'S NOT POSSIBLE!" Chaos Reaper exclaimed

"Oh yes it is…" Ash spoke slowly. His eyes were closed, his right armoured arm shone bright gold, and his body was radiating with incredible energy…

**SMAAAASH!**

"AAAAAAAGH!" Chaos Reaper screamed as Ash hit him in the face. The strength and power was incredible. Chaos Reaper was practically sent flying by the blow

"You amuse yourself by tormenting the innocent… you prey on their fears and toy with their lives" Ash spoke quietly as Chaos Reaper got up "Such wickedness… such evil…" his shot open, "SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED TO EXIST!!!!"

**CRASH!**

Chaos Reaper took the full blow and was sent crashing through several walls before painfully hitting the ground "Agh… Ash Ketchum… he's a Chosen One…! He has the power of one…" Chaos Reaper slowly got up and raised his scythe, "Doesn't matter. I am also strengthened by the same power… and now that I know this kid can fight back… that's it, I'm not holding back" he smirked

Ash struck a new fighter's stance. Once that showed great confidence and hope. Chaos Reaper was charging at him, and Ash was ready to fight!

_NAME: Ash Ketchum_

_WEAPONS: QuickSilver_

_CLASS: Hero, Pokémon Master, Level I Chosen One_

_RANK: S_

(Location- Grim Void)

"Ash stands a fighting chance now!" Ebi smiled, looking at the EbiDex scanner "Go Ash! Show us… the true strength of a Chosen One!"

"GO ASH!!!"

"FIGHT HIM!!!"

"YOU CAN DO IT!!!"

All of Ash's friends were cheering for him. Every one in the void, even those who didn't know Ash cheered him on. He had everyone's support, and their hopes riding on his shoulders. It was up to Ash. The fate of all his friends, as well as the lives of countless others were in his hands

(Location- Marble City)

"BLOOD SLASH!" Chaos Reaper slashed with his hand.

Ash tilted his head to the side, avoiding the hit

"BLOOD SLASH! MORTAL REAPER! BLOOD WHIP! BLOOD FANG!" All these moves Chaos Reaper used them again and again, Ash dodged, blocked and deflected every single hit. Chaos Reaper couldn't even touch him. "MORTAL REAPER!" Chaos Reaper swung the scythe once more…

**CLANG!**

"What?!" He gasped, there was a bright flash of light as the blade ricocheted off Ash!

"Your power has no more effect on me." Ash smirked, "HAAA!!!!"

**SMASHHHH!!!!!**

Ash uppercutted the demonic Super Fiend HARD, and sent him flying high "AAGH!" Chaos Reaper clenched his jaw as he was shot into the air "S… so… strong…!" he growled as he landed, he pulled out his whip "BLOOD WHIP!"

"HA!" Ash caught the whip in his hand. Chaos Reaper tried to pull, but the Super Fiend's strength level didn't compare to Ash's. Ash yanked the whip hard, pulling Chaos Reaper up close

**POW!**

Every single hit Ash delivered to this vampire was a powerful blow that sent him flying. Ash had the elemental advantage as well

"There's no way…" Chaos Reaper was gasping for air, "T-too… strong…!" He knew Ash was too powerful… he had to try something different… "Lurking Death…!" he suddenly phased into a ghost and flew into the air, looking down at his opponent. Chaos Reaper growled, he knew there was no way he could defeat the Chosen One… he must outsmart him! "RAR!" He abandoned the cover of the lurking death and dove down, attacking with his scythe and claws.

Ash deflected these hits easily, but he did not catch onto Chaos Reaper's plan… "HA!" Ash shouted, striking at Chaos Reaper

"LURKING DEATH!" Chaos Reaper shifted to the ghost form and passed right through Ash… "I HAVE YOU NOW!" He solidified to his normal state, right behind Ash!

"WA?!" Ash looked and could see him, but it was too late!

"IT'S OVER FOR YOU!" Chaos Reaper grabbed him by the arms, and before Ash could try to break out of the grip, Chaos Reaper opened his mouth "BLOOD FANG!" he sunk his fangs into Ash's left shoulder

"Ah…!" Ash's eyes opened wide as he felt the fangs sink into him… "AHH… AAAAAAAAAAARRGGGGHHHH!!!!!!!" he screamed in agony

"Ungh…" Misty started to stir… "…Ash?" she opened her eyes and got up. Rubbing her head, she looked to the side and gasped at the sight she saw

"L-LET GO!!! STOP IT!" Ash was screaming and twisting and trying to shake Chaos Reaper off, but Chaos Reaper wouldn't let go "I SAID LET GO!!!!!!"

**CRRRRACK!!!!**

Ash hit the vampiric Super Fiend, sending him crashing through the walls, "Agh…" he dropped to his knees, tears were gathering in is eyes. That was the most painful thing he had ever felt in his life…!

"It's over for you…" Chaos Reaper got up, licking his lips, which were stained red with blood and smiling, content with the pain he had inflicted. Though he had taken a painful critical blow, the damage was done. "The venom has entered your bloodstream… and the infection has begun!"

"Agh… AGGH! WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME?!" Ash screamed. He was in tears. The pain on his left shoulder was starting to hurt him even more

"Heh-heh-heh… I've given you my special venom!" Chaos Reaper laughed evilly, "As the poison flows through you… your body will rot and decay! Don't you see? You are dying on your feet, one piece at a time!"

"No…" Ash stared in horror at his shoulder. He could see the wound… colour was fading away, and it was spreading painfully down to his left arm…! "Ebi will know what to do… when we get him out of that dimension, he'll help me. I'll find a way to get him here… no matter what!" Ash struck his fighting stance

"How amusing!" Chaos Reaper laughed

"RAAAAAAAAARRRGH!!!" Ash shouted, charging forwards. Chaos Reaper smirked

**SMACK!!!!**

"AGH!" Ash was sent flying when Chaos Reaper uppercutted him

"It's no use, your strength is diminishing. Your power level has already dropped to below that of mine, and is fading fast! And speaking of which, the infection is doing nicely as well!" Chaos Reaper laughed as he pointed at Ash's left arm

"Ngh…!" Ash was sweating, as his left arm hung there uselessly, there was no colour left in it and he could not feel or control it. His left arm was dead…

"Your fate is sealed, nothing will stop the infection!" Chaos Reaper laughed

"GRRRRRAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!" Ash screamed, casting aside his fear and pain, and charged once again towards Chaos Reaper.

**POW!**

The Super Fiend punched him again and sent him flying. Ash was getting critically weaker! "Don't you get it?! There's not way you can win! You can't even touch me!" Chaos Reaper shouted, "Your strength is now down to the level before you used the power of one! There is little time left!"

"No…!" Ash fell to his knees. The pain was indescribable, as he could feel his insides deteriorating… more and more of his body was dying… every second he merely existed was agony… he wanted it all to end…! Tears were flowing down his face… it was hopeless.. "There's nothing I can do…"

"You're wrong" said Misty. Ash turned around to see her

"Misty…" Ash covered his face, "Don't look at me! Please go! It's too late for me! Run, save yourself! I don't want you to see me die!" he was crying

**SLAP!**

"Snap out of it!" Misty gave him a serious look, "I can't believe you. You are giving up just like that? You, the chosen one, with the hopes of all those people, are giving up? You should be ashamed of yourself!" She glared at him, and tears were flowing down her face "Please Ash… don't give up. Do this for our friends… do it for me… hurry…" she looked at him in the eyes

"Hmm…" Ash closed his eyes… "(_Whatever I do now… it's all over for me… I can't win against that man, he's simply too strong…_)" but another side of him disagreed, "(_Am I really going to give up? Right now, I'm fighting… I'm fighting for my friends…! They're all counting on me…!_)" Ash clenched his knuckles tight… "(_This may be the end for me, and whatever choice I make… I'm done for… but at least I can agree on one thing…_)" he slowly stood up, "Until I can save my friends, I refuse to die"

"You've got to be kidding! Your body is almost dead, not even a glimmer of hope, less than a minute to live and you still wish to fight?!"

"Heh… well if I have a minute to live, then it's all the same to me, eh?" Ash smirked, "I won't even need a minute to take you down!"

"Hm… a warrior to the end?" Chaos Reaper scowled, clutching his scythe, "Then we shall end it in one final blow!"

"Hmmm…" Ash closed his eyes and spoke "You are a twisted man… dark and evil… nothing but a monster… You attack my friends and the innocent people… why? What could possibly justify such actions? You keep speaking of me standing for the destruction of the world… yet you judge me as you commit these despicable actions?" Ash paused, "No reason… no honour… you define the evil I am fighting against… and I will defeat you… BECAUSE I'M A CHOSEN ONE!!!!"

"HAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!" The two of them shouted, charging towards one another…

**-CLASH-**

This sound rang throughout the lands. Even those in the void could hear it. No one dared to speak. No one dared to breathe. No one knew who was the victor…

Standing there was Chaos Reaper with his scythe, and Ash Ketchum with his glowing QuickSilver arm. They had seemingly run right through one another and struck with their final attacks. Both of them were stood perfectly still… suddenly, Chaos Reaper's legs began to wobble…

"Ugh…" Chaos Reaper collapsed to the ground. His body glowed black for a second, and then the fangs, the claws, the bone armour and cape vanished, leaving him as Goth in his regular outfit. Even his scythe has gone back to the regular level it once was. Goth, the Super Fiend wielding the power of darkness has been defeated!

"Heh…" Ash managed to laugh a little… The glow on the QuickSilver faded, and the clips holding his arm to the QuickSilver shattered, causing the damaged weapon to fall and hit the ground, the shining sphere rolled out. Ash turned his head to Misty. He closed his eyes and smiled "Hey Misty… did you see that? I did it… I won…" as he uttered those words, his legs gave away and he also collapsed…

"ASH!" Misty ran forwards and caught him before he fell, "Ash…" she spoke quietly as she rested him gently to the ground

"Heh… Misty… I can't believe I did it… who'd have ever thought it was possible?" Ash opened his eyes and spoke weakly

"Ash… yes… you were amazing" Misty smiled, but tears were in her eyes

"Not just me… you too Misty. You're even more amazing… you know how much I love you…" Ash smiled, "You mean the entire world to me…"

"Oh Ash… I love you too…" Said Misty

"You have no idea how happy that makes me feel every time you say that…" Said Ash weakly, "When I'm with you, everything feels like it will be alright… everything seems brighter… everything's happier…"

"Ash?"

"At least this way I will die happily…" Ash said as he closed his eyes…

"Ash! No!" Misty exclaimed, "That can't be!"

"I'm sorry Misty… you don't know how much I regret this… all the things I will miss… I guess I was destined for things other than being a pokémon master…too bad… I'm gonna miss teasing Brock about his eyes… or lack of… heck, I already miss Team Rocket's stupid motto…" He spoke in a hushed tone; "I guess I'm a little young to say this… but you… I wanted to wait… until we were old enough… to get… ma…" he coughed, he couldn't go on. "Don't cry Misty… even dead… I'll be waiting for you in the afterlife… goodbye… M-ist… y…" those were the last words that left his lips. His head dropped to the ground, he wasn't breathing anymore.

"Ash…?" Misty shook him "Ash!" tears were welling up in her eyes, "No… please… no!!" She shook him, but he didn't move. His heart wasn't beating. Ash Ketchum was dead. "NO…! ASH…! AAAAASSSSHHHH!!!"

(Location- Grim Void)

Everyone in the Grim Void had heard what the two were saying, and they were all stricken with grief

"I can't believe it… he's… Ash is…!!" Tracey couldn't finish

"After so long, they have admitted to each other how they truly felt… but now…! It… it's just not fair…! IT'S JUST NOT FAIR!" Brock screamed

"I have seen many tragedies in my journeys… but nothing came close to this" Ebi's head hung low, as he tried to comfort his sister…

Everyone in the Grim Void had been cheering Ash on, but the cheering has turned to mourning. Quite a lot of them were crying. Jessie burst into tears while James tried to comfort her, also struggling to hold back his tears as well.

The only one who didn't look sad was Gary. As a matter of fact, he was leaning back casually with his arms crossed. He was smiling. If there really was a tragedy involving Ash, then he'd have been crying, but he knew something that they didn't. All the time he knew him, Gary Oak had learned never to underestimate Ash Ketchum…

(Location- Marble City)

"How… can I go on?" Misty asked herself. Her tears have not stopped yet, "I'm alone…" she said to herself. "We were supposed to be together, forever… why? Why did this have to happen?" she asked herself, "WHYYYY!?!?" she screamed and burst into tears.

-Sparkle-

"Huh?" she looked left and right, hearing a strange glittering sound. Wondering where the sound was coming from. Then she remembered where, and reached into her pockets and pulled out the card '_La Force de L'amour_'. "This card… it strengthened us… it was what made us realize that we love each other…" she stared at it. "What?" it began to sparkle… and flew out of her hands. It remained there, floating in the air, the same colourful sparkles that healed them the first time circled around them… At the same time, the card that Ash had picked up, the card simply known as '_Justice_' also moved into the air. Suddenly, the Shining Sphere flashed bright, glowing fiercely… and the two cards shattered! Breaking into countless bits of light…

The twinkling bits of light fell slowly like snow… as the Shining Sphere continued to glow, the same glow began to surround Ash's body… he began to shine like the sun, as the light from the cards was being absorbed into his body. Ash began to stir…

"Ash…?" Misty wiped the tears out of her eyes

"Ungh…" Ash sat up and rubbed his head. He turned to her, opened his eyes, and the first thing he saw was… "Misty?"

"Ash…!" Tears gathered once more in Misty's eyes

"MISTY!!!" He cried out as they embraced, but this time they were crying tears of happiness. They were together again, and it would remain that way, forever. They gazed into each other's eyes, their arms wrapped around each other, they engaged themselves in a long and passionate kiss.

As the kiss ended, there was a roar of applause. Surprised, both Ash and Misty looked up to see the entire city, all the people cheering, and at the front were their friends and pokémon. The sky started to brighten, as the sun was rising, ending the long dark night.

"YOU DID IT!" Brock, Tracey and Ebi ran forwards

"YOU'RE HEROES!!!" Amaebi and Team Rocket ran forwards.

They all lifted Ash and Misty up into the air.

"THREE CHEERS FOR ASH AND MISTY!!!" Gary shouted

HIP-HIP-HOORAY! HIP-HIP-HOORAY! HIP-HIP-HOOOORAAAAY!

The celebration lasted from the beginning of the dawn until late at night. Though lots of the city had been heavily damaged, no one could resist celebrating to all the music in this momentous occasion dedicated to Ash and Misty. As night came, the city was still full of music and festival lights, and Ebi was setting up a fireworks display… and speaking of Ebi… "AAAAAH!" Ebi was searching around frantically

"What's wrong?" Amaebi asked as she walked by

"I just fixed the QuickSilver! I put it right there, but now it's gone!" Said Ebi

"Never mind that right now! Everyone's gathered around the centre of the town!" Said Tracey, "They want Ash and Misty to step up and give a few words!"

"Um… where are they anyways?" asked Brock

"You won't find them here" they heard a voice. They turned around and saw Sky Render. He looked unusually happy, and he was holding up the heavily injured and unconscious Twin Dreamer and Goth on his shoulders, "I saw them run off holding hands, before Ash jumped onto that QuickSilver thing and she jumped along with him and they left. Probably to find some peace and quiet, as well as a little privacy! And speaking of leaving… I'd better go too!" Sky Render finished, and leapt to the top of a building and out of sight, carrying his fallen comrades

"Well there he goes" Brock said as

"Should we follow them? After all… we ARE angry at them"

"…" Everyone paused for a minute… "NAAAH!" they all said at the same time

"You know, this whole experience has really been exciting" Gary stepped forwards, he had finished setting up the fireworks, and now he just had to wait for the time to light them, "I've only been fighting against regular guys, but never any REAL super villains. I've been getting kinda bored lately and my life could use a little change. And also, since Ash and me are friends again, I'd like to know when he gets back, that if I could tag along? We've got some catching up to do"

"Speaking of groups, don't you think it's about time ours got back together, Ebi?" Amaebi stepped forwards, "We originally split up so the Fiends wouldn't find us, but with Ash along, there's no need to hide! I'll travel with you, while looking for our old friends! This team's short on females anyways! And hey, we might find Tobiko too! You'd really like that, RIGHT Ebi?" She nudged him

"Sure, whatever…" Ebi crossed his arms and looked away, in an attempt to hide the redness on his face. Quickly he changed the subject, "Hey! You know there's a dance going on right now? Come on, we could use a little fun!"

"YEAH!" They all cheered

(Location- Oasis)

"Not bad for our first date, eh Misty?" asked Ash. He and Misty were sitting on a large boulder, holding hands. No one had followed them; they left their pokémon behind and came here alone.

"Absolutely perfect" Misty smiled. This place was beautiful. Up in the sky, the stars were twinkling and the moon was full. When they looked down, they could see their reflections perfectly in the crystal clear waters of the Sapphire Oasis, and all the plants growing around this area certainly added to the scenery. Everything was so peaceful, and was quite a change for all that fighting. They could see the city perfectly from here. It looked quite nice with all the colourful lights of different colours. They could hear the music from here. "Hey! Listen to that!" Misty exclaimed

The dance music ended and it sounded like the last song was being played. It was a calm slow dance. Ash smiled as he got up. "Hey Misty" he said as he stepped down from the rock and reached up with his hand, "May I have this dance?"

"Heehee…" Misty giggled and held Ash's hand, letting him support her as she came down from the boulder, "You're such a gentleman"

Even from where they were, they could hear the music clearly. They danced together to the slow music, and relished every moment of it. Their faces were only a few inches away from each other, and they both engaged themselves in a long and beautiful kiss that seemed to last forever. Finally the song ended and the festival was ending. Ash and Misty sighed as they let go, gazing into each other's eyes and smiled. All of the sudden, a loud popping sound echoed throughout the sky, making them both jump. They looked up to see that a fireworks display was starting.

"Hey Misty! Come on!" Ash regained his playful side and ran to the boulder.

"Hey wait up!" Misty called as she ran to catch up with him. Ash had climbed it and reached down for her hand, pulling her up.

They enjoyed the fireworks very much. Each one was more impressive than the last. After several minutes, the display ended and the city quieted down. Bit by bit, the lights around the city were turning off and people were going. In the end, the lights all went off and the only lights left was the one shining from the moon

"Hmm…" Ash sighed, looking up at the stars… he remembered the battle that took place, and the one who set it all up, "(_You knew the outcome was gonna be like this, didn't you Sky?_)" he wondered, "(_Heh… no, I'm not gonna thank you for this… but because of this, I now understand the true meaning of strength… and I will use this strength to protect the people I love…_)" he looked to his side

"Brrrr…" Misty started to shiver.

"Are you cold Misty?" Asked Ash. The wind blew, and he started shivering himself. The desert was very cold at night and they didn't have a fire, but there were other ways they could keep warm. "Misty, come here" Misty nudged closer to Ash, and he pulled out a blanket from his bag. It was a bit small, so they had to cuddle together to make room. Both of them were warmed right up. They continued watch the stars, they until they could stay awake no longer. They fell asleep in each other's arms, keeping each other warm in the coldness of the night. Where will things go from here? We don't know. What will the future have in store? Is this the end of the story, or just the beginning? Only time will tell…

_And so ends Volume 1 of this story. With the power he holds and his friends by his side… what new challenges await Ash Ketchum? It is a long, steep road ahead, and many treacherous obstacles litter the path… but Ash will not falter, and he will continue his journey to the top. The story isn't ending, this is only the beginning. I humbly thank all of the readers who have supported me as I wrote this story, and Season 2 is coming soon. I would also like to give special thanks to Pikachic13, KawaiiKero86, Charizard, along with my proof-reader 'The Ultimate Trainer' as well as my right-hand man 'The Tensai' Satoshi 'Vash' Kuwabara III, for without their support I doubt I'd have gotten through this fic! Keep an eye out for season 2! If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, feel free to email me anytime!_

►**THE END◄**


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